What Was Giles Thinking?
by Echoes-Immortal
Summary: What Giles thought during the Seasons of Buffy the Vampire Slayer... And how their relationship changes! Please read and review... lots of GilesXBuffy fun! Rating just in case.
1. Chapter 1

**_Hey Guys (Meaning anyone amazing enough to read this)!!! This story is about Giles version of what happened during the seven seasons of BTVS, and it is a BuffyXGiles fic. Right now I'm doing every episode, but there are a lot of those, obviously, so I might not do that the whole time. At first, it's going to be just like the series, but from Giles' POV. It will change in chapter 11-ish. So here is episode one... Welcome to the Hellmouth._**

_Also, I do not own anything, it all belongs to Joss Whedon and all the other amazing people who made BTVS possible!!! Also, most, if not all, of the dialogue is from the show itself._

_In Every Generation there is a Chosen One. She Alone Will Stand Against the Vampires, the Demons and the Forces of Darkness. She is the Slayer. _

Rupert Giles walked down the oh-so-familiar halls of Sunnydale High with a distracted expression on his face. The noise _of_ the packed and crowded hallways fell on deaf ears, and the jostling around him went unnoticed. Inside, he was bouncing with excitement, although Exterior-Giles would never allow such emotion to show, and would never allow himself to act in such a mundane and childish way.

The Slayer was coming here. _Today_. He could hardly believe his luck. While others had pined away for years for the chance to work with _the _slayer, whoever she was at the time, he, Rupert Giles, the one who had always been buried in the Watcher Diaries of the past, was the one who had been chosen. How could he face this monumental task? And what would she be like?

Giles pictured the Slayer in his mind. She would be tall, and strong. Probably with black hair, dark, determined eyes, and with a stoic, blank expression that came from years of rigid training. But aside from appearances, she would have excellent marks in school, probably at the top of her grade. Like him, she would know several different languages, and everything there was to know about every demon, vampire and prophecy that had ever been written about. She would be obedient and a hard worker, who always did what she was supposed to do. She would be _perfect._

Giles grinned to himself, thinking of all the wonderful things they could accomplish. With him there to guide her mind and her activities, they might even be able to rid Sunnydale of its plaque of evil once and for all...someday.

Giles's thoughts jerked back to the present when he realized he was passing Principal Flutie's office. He may as well step in now and ask the man if the new student had arrived. Halting in his furious pace towards the library, he turned towards the door and raised a fist to knock on the fogged-glass window of the office.

Just then, he heard voices coming from the inside, Flutie's voice and that of a young female, probably a student. Maybe this was her? Though he was not usually one to eavesdrop, he found himself staying where he was, and pressing an ear to the door.

The girl was speaking. Her voice was a bit soft, a bit more girly then Giles had expected. But then again, he didn't even know if this was her. And even if it was, who was he to judge someone by their voice?

"I know my transcripts are a little...colourful."

So this was her. As far as he knew, Buffy Summers was the only new student at the school, and no one else would need to discuss transcripts with the principal. But what did she mean by 'colourful'?

Flutie spoke. "Hey... We're not caring about that. Do you think 'colourful' is the word? Not 'dismal'?

_Dismal???_

The girl muttered something Giles couldn't hear, and when Flutie replied, his voice was incredulous.

"You burned down the _gym_."

"I did, I really did, but... You're not seeing the big picture here, I mean, that gym was full of vampi... asbestos."

Was there anyway that _the _Slayer was this careless? Because there was no doubts in his mind that this was the Slayer. Perhaps Flutie wouldn't notice her slip-up, but Giles certainly did. How could his perfect Slayer be so obvious as to burn down an entire gym? Surely there was a better, and more subtle, solution. And then to make a mistake like that, almost telling someone about the vampires... That kind of mistake, if it was paid too much attention to, could be fatal to the entire system the Slayers and Watchers had set up over the centuries.

Flutie spoke again. "Buffy, don't worry. Any other school they might say 'watch your step', or 'we'll be watching you'... But, that's just not the way here. We want to service your needs, and help you to respect our needs. And if your needs and our needs don't mesh...

Something slapped down against the table, as if the principal had slammed his hand down. The noise startled Giles, and he realized that he had no business eavesdropping on the conversation. Turning away, he continued his dignified almost-sprint to the library. Careless Slayer or no, he had a lot of work to do in preparation.

*****

A couple of hours later, Giles was still fumbling to find everything. He had made sure that the cage in the back was well stocked with weapons, all of which were well organized, first by the year it was invented and then by quality. He had taken several very important books down from their shelves and placed them in a neat stack in his office. But now he couldn't find the most important book, the book that had everything. A Slayer would expect her Watcher to have such a thing...

Suddenly, Giles heard the library door open and frowned to himself as he continued to hunt through the books he had stored in the cage. Who could possibly be entering the library? He couldn't even remember the last time a student had willingly...

"Hello, is anybody here?"

Giles tensed and turned away from the stack of books. That voice... it was the new girl. He paused for a moment. So much for being ready when the Slayer got here. He straightened his tweed jacket and feathered his hand through his dark brown hair, wishing he had a comb.... Then he rolled his eyes at his own foolishness. Looks could not impress the Slayer. Knowledge would, though, and he had plenty of that.

Giles moved out from the cage and moved towards the front of the library. He managed to get a good look at the girl before she spotted him. She was petite, with dark blonde hair that lay loose around her shoulders. She wore a white shirt, with a short brown skirt and brown knee-high boots. A bag was slung over one shoulder. She did not look like the Slayer he had imagined, but just as he expected a Slayer not to judge her Watcher on appearance, she would expect the same from him.

She was leaning over the counter, reading a paper that Giles had foolishly left out. In it was an article about some local boys that had gone missing. Giles suspected demonic involvement, so he had circled it in red. If anyone other then the Slayer had found it, what would they have thought?

Because he had reached the girl and she did not seem to notice him, he tapped her on the shoulder. She gasped, startled, and spun around.

"Oh! Anybody's here."

Did that sentence even make any sense, Giles wondered? And since when was it so easy to sneak up on a Slayer? Then he blinked, astonished, as he realized how pretty the Slayer was. Her heart shaped was tilted up towards his, and her large green eyes blinked up at him like those of a startled kitten.

"Can I help you?" Giles asked, refusing to let such thoughts linger.

"I was looking for some, well, books. I'm new."

He frowned to himself. They had _told_ the girl, right? That she would have a new Watcher? "Miss Summers?" He asked, checking.

"Good call! Guess I'm the only new kid, huh?" She smiled up at him and Giles was annoyed to find himself momentarily dazzled.

"I'm Mr. Giles. The librarian. I was told you were coming."

The name did not seem to ring any bells. As Giles circled the desk with the intention of stashing away the paper, he spotted something and stopped mid-step, reaching for it happily. Buffy was saying something, but he didn't even hear the girl as he triumphantly pulled out the book he had been looking for.

"I know what you're after!"

He slammed it down onto the counter with more force then he had intended to, and looked at the Slayer's face, waiting for her reaction.

Buffy's eyes wandered over the faded cover of the book, and scanned the word written across its cover. _"Vampyr"_. Instead of smiling or looking excited, the girl paled and her suddenly uneasy gaze flashed to his.

"That's not what I'm looking for."

Giles was shocked to hear her voice tremble.

"Are you sure?" He insisted, inching the book closer to her in case she hadn't seen it properly.

"I'm _way _sure."

The poor girl looked terrified. Giles felt a flush of embarrassment stain his cheeks. What if he had been wrong? What if someone had mixed up the names, mixed up... something? Anything?

"My mistake." He muttered.

Slowly, he put the book back under the counter.

"So what is it you said..."

The girl was gone.

******

Buffy Summers had to struggle to conceal her mounting terror. Two classes later and she was still petrified about what had occurred in the library. There was no _way_ she was doing that again. They couldn't force her, right? There was no way they could force her...

Her scattering thoughts settled on the Librarian. He had been cute, in a sort of nerdish way, and probably at least 20 years older then her. Still, that was relatively young for a Watcher, in her experience. Part of her felt bad for making him believe she wasn't the Slayer. He looked so embarrassed and disappointed. But maybe a little relieved too. After all, who would want a Slayer like her? And even if she had upset him... she had done worse things in the name of her "calling".

Then Buffy noticed that she had wandered outside the school building. On one of the benches outside sat the same girl Buffy had seen Cordelia tease earlier at the water fountains. What had Cordelia said? Something about knowing your losers. But Willow looked nice enough to her, and after everything that had gone down at her old school, Buffy knew what it was like to feel like an outcast. So she walked over.

"Hi! Willow, right?"

Willow looked up, startled, and then smiled shyly. "Why? I mean... Hi! Did you want me to move?"

Buffy fought the urge to laugh. "Why don't we start with, 'Hi, I'm Buffy,' and then let's segue directly into me asking you for a favour." Buffy sat down next to Willow. "It doesn't involve moving, but it does involve hanging out with me for a while."

First, Willow's smile broadened. Then it faded, and she looked a little sceptical. "But aren't you hanging out with Cordelia?"

"I can't do both?"

Willow grinned. "Not legally."

The two girls began to chat, and Buffy felt, for the first time since she had been kicked out her old school, that she might actually fit in here. Have friends. Willow even agreed to help her catch up in school work, which sounded great until Willow suggested they meet in the library to study.

"Or not. Or we could meet someplace quieter. Louder. Uh, that place just kinda gives me the wiggins." Buffy stammered.

"Oh, it has that effect on most kids. I love it, though, it's a great collection, and the new librarian is really cool."

"He's new?" That would make some sense, she supposed. If he was supposed to be her Watcher, it was no big thing for him to get himself a position at her school. Watchers in the past had done more outrageous things to ensure they were close to their Slayers.

"Yeah, he just started. He was a curator at some British museum, or, or The British Museum, I'm not sure. But he knows everything, and he brought all these historical volumes and biographies, and am I the single dullest person alive?"

Buffy laughed, forcing thoughts of the librarian away for the time being. "Not at all."

Suddenly, two guys showed up. One, Buffy recognized as the boy who had helped her pick up her things in the hall.... Xander was his name? He jumped up on the while behind him, while his friend, whom Buffy didn't know, moved to stand in front of them, dumping his bag carelessly on the ground.

"Hey!" The second boy said.

"You guys busy?" Xander asked, "Are we interrupting? We're interrupting."

Buffy and Willow said hello to the newcomers, then Willow made the introductions, introducing the second guy as Jesse.

"Oh, me and Buffy go waaay back, old friends, very close." Said Xander, "Then there's that period of estrangement where I think we were both growing as people, but now here we are, like old times, I'm quite moved."

Jesse grinned. "Is it me, or are you turning into a bibbling idiot?"

Xander looked sheepish, and seemed to sigh inwardly. "No, it's not you."

"Well, it's nice to meet you guys, I think." Buffy said uncertainly, and then froze in horror when Xander hopped down from the wall, rummaged in his bag, and pulled out her stake. Jesse said something about welcoming her, but Buffy could only stare at the stake in Xander's hand. How could she be so careless... already....

"And to return this." Xander said, adding his input to whatever Jesse had said. "The only thing I can

think is that you're building a really little fence.

He handed it over and Buffy snatched it from his fingers, hugging it protectively against her for a moment. "No, um, actually it was for self-defence. Everyone has them in L.A. Pepper spray is just so passé."

Her new friends were easily convinced, and as they started talking about her life in L.A, and the boredom found in small towns like Sunnydale, Buffy found herself relaxing once more. That was, until Cordelia showed up.

"Are these guys bothering you?" She sneered, looking at Xander, Jesse and Willow with distain.

"No." Buffy assured her, lifting her chin slightly. She could hang out with whoever she wanted to, after all. Willow ruined this proud gesture by instantly assuring Cordelia.

"She's not hanging out with us."

Buffy felt like slapping her forehead. Instead she watched as Jesse cozied up next to Cordelia and tried to get her attention.

"Oh, please!" Cordelia snapped at him, and then turned to Buffy. "I don't mean to interrupt your downward mobility, but I just wanted to tell you that you won't be meeting Coach Foster, the woman with the chest hair, because gym was cancelled due to the _extreme_ dead guy in the locker."

"What?"

"What are you talking about?"

"Some guy was stuffed in Aura's locker!" Cordelia insisted, seeming both proud that she was the first to deliver the news and disgusted at what she was saying.

"Dead." Buffy felt a cold feeling inside her. _Not again_.

"Totally dead. _Way_ dead."

Xander rolled his eyes. "It's not just a little dead, then?"

Buffy ignored their bantering. "How did he die?"

"I don't know."

"Well, were there any marks?"

"Morbid much! I didn't ask!"

Of course not. Buffy stood, snatching her bag up off the bench. "Um, I gotta book. I'll, I'll see you guys

later."

And she hurried away.

******

How could he have made such a stupid mistake? Him, Rupert Giles, possibly the most intelligent and well-read Watcher of the times. How could he ever have thought that girl was the Slayer? She was the cheerleader type, the lip gloss and short skirt type. Not the strong, stoic Slayer type. Giles shoved a book onto a shelf and moved on down the isle, muttering to himself about the faulty system.

"Okay, what's the sitch?"

Giles jerked with surprise and spun around, looking for the source of the voice, although he recognized it instantly. "Sorry?"

Then he saw Buffy stalking through the library towards the stacks where he was standing.

"You heard about the dead guy, right?" She snapped, "The dead guy in the locker?"

Giles moved into the outer part of the library and blinked at her in confusion. "Yes...."

Buffy dropped her things on a table and came to stand almost toe to toe with him.

"'Cause, it's the weirdest thing. He's got two little, little holes in his neck, and all his blood's been drained. Isn't that bizarre? Aren't you just going, ooo?"

It _was _her! This _was _the Slayer! But he focused on her words. "I was afraid of this." He muttered.

Well, _I_ wasn't!" The girl seemed to be spitting mad, and Giles only barely managed to stop himself from backing away. "It's my first day! I was afraid that I was gonna be behind in all my classes, that I wouldn't make any friends, that I would have last month's hair. I didn't think there'd be vampires on campus. And I don't care."

Giles frowned at her. A Slayer, not caring? So he pointed out the obvious. "Then why are you here?"

Buffy flushed, and started to stammer. "To tell you that... I don't care which... I don't, and... have now told you, so... bye.

She started to leave, but Giles spoke before she could. He had to keep her here, had to convince her of her duty. He told himself it had nothing to do with that confused, almost _haunted _look in her eyes...

"Is he, w-will he rise again?" The question was the first that came into his mind, but it did stop her.

She turned back to face him. "Who?"

"The boy."

"No. He's just dead."

"Can you be sure?"

Any Slayer would know how to tell if a victim had been turned. It would be obvious. Buffy seemed to be thinking along the same lines. She rolled those expressive eyes of hers and said,

"To make you a vampire they have to suck your blood. And then you have to suck their blood. It's like a whole big sucking thing. Mostly they're just gonna kill you." Then she frowned. "Why am I still talking to you?"

As she turned and went down the stairs, Giles hurried over to the railing.

"You really have no idea what's going on, do you?" He said, starting to feel annoyed, "You think its coincidence, your being here? That boy was just the beginning."

"Oh, why can't you people just leave me alone?" He searched her gaze and was relieved to see only anger reflecting back at him.

"Because you are the Slayer." He moved down the stairs towards her. "Into each generation a Slayer is born, one girl in all the world, a Chosen One, one born with the strength and skill to hunt the vampires..."

"...with the strength and skill to hunt the vampires, to stop the spread of their evil blah, blah, blah... I've

heard it, okay?"

Giles stopped and stared at her, baffled. "I really don't understand this attitude. You, you've accepted

your duty, you, you've slain vampires before..."

"Yeah, and I've both been there and done that, and I'm moving on."

Giles scowled to himself and tried to remember that, Slayer or no, this girl was only about 16 years old. Maybe she could not be expected to have the same level of maturity normally demanded of a Slayer.

"What do you know about this town?" He asked, swiftly changing tactics. He walked into his office to grab the stack of books he had pulled out before.

"It's two hours on the freeway from Neiman Marcus?"

"Dig a bit in the history of this place. You'll find a steady stream of fairly odd occurrences. Now, I believe this whole area is a center of mystical energy." He re entered the room. "That things gravitate towards it that, that, that you might not find elsewhere."

"Like vampires."

Giles started to stack the books into Buffy's arms. "Like zombies, werewolves, incubi, succubi, everything you've ever dreaded was under your bed, but told yourself couldn't be by the

light of day. They're all real!"

"What? You, like, sent away for the Time-Life series?"

"Ah, we- well -yes." He couldn't believe he was stammering like a schoolboy. He _never _stammered. What was it about this girl that made him so damned nervous?

"Did you get the free phone?"

"The calendar."

"Cool." Then she seemed to snap out of it, and pushed the books back towards him. "But, okay, first of all, I'm a Vampire Slayer. And secondly, I'm retired. Hey, I know! Why don't _you_ kill 'em?

Retired?? "I-I'm a Watcher, I-I haven't the skill..." He had more skill then this girl would expect from a bookish man his age, but he wasn't about to tell her that.

" Oh, come on, stake through the heart, a little sunlight... It's like falling off a log."

"A Slayer slays, a Watcher..."

"Watches?"

"Yes. No!" Giles struggled not to laugh as he set the books down. Managing to keep a straight face even through their bantering, he said, "He, he trains her, he, he prepares her..." And there was that embarrassing stammering again. Hopefully she would think he always stammered when he spoke, not just around her.

"Prepares me for what? For getting kicked out of school? For losing all of my friends? For having to spend all of my time fighting for my life and never getting to tell anyone because I might endanger

them? Go ahead! Prepare me."

For a moment, Giles could only stare at her. For all the girl's glib comments and attitude, there was so much pain and weariness in her eyes. She might be able to pretend that she was an airheaded teenage girl, but her eyes would always tell the truth. They were far too expressive to hide anything. Buffy breathed out, then turned away and left the library swiftly.

"Damn!" He muttered, and took off after her.

Neither of them saw Xander walk out from behind the stacks, a math book Willow had asked him to get clutched in his hand.

" What?"

******

Giles hurried down the hall after Buffy, trying to focus enough so that he could bully her into listening, instead of comforting her as some small, irrational part of him wanted to.

"It's getting worse!" He said.

Buffy sighed. "_What's_ getting worse?"

He grabbed her arm, firmly but gently, and led her over towards the wall, out of the way.

" The influx of the undead, the... supernatural occurrences, it's been building for years." He insisted. He had to make her see_ how _important this was. "There's a reason why you're here and a reason why it's now!

"Because now is the time my mom moved here." Buffy muttered.

She tried to walk around him, to escape, but he put out his arm, pinning her against the wall.

"Something's coming, something, something... something is, is gonna happen here. Soon!"

"Gee, can you vague that up for me?"

Giles lifted his eyes to the ceiling. Why couldn't the girl speak _English_? "The signs, as far as I can tell, point to a crucial mystical upheaval, very soon. Days. Possibly less."

"Oh, come on! This is Sunnydale! How bad an evil can there be here?"

Finally, Giles lifted his arm, letting her pass by him, which she did with a great amount of huffiness. The man sighed as he watched her go. He would not give up though. He had to make her see reason, make her understand and accept her calling once more. He could not blame her for being afraid, but no matter how cruel he might be for doing so, he had to force her to undertake the task once more. He had no other option. Besides, Buffy was the Slayer. Afraid or no, she would come to her senses sooner or later, with or without him. It was in her blood, and as soon as she saw danger for others she would do her best to protect them. Perhaps with a little help from him, though, it could be sooner rather then later.

******

_Stupid Librarians!!! Stupid Watchers!!! _

Buffy was almost stomping down the darkened street towards the Bronze, her thoughts buzzing like a hive of angry bees through her head. How dare this man make her feel guilty? Make her feel like, thanks to her, people were doing to die, deaths she could have prevented if only she picked up that stake once more and...

_Never again. _

Yes, maybe she had saved peoples lives. Maybe she had vanquished evil (well, only a little evil, and only for a little while, but still it was _something_). But so what? No one ever knew about it. Instead of thanking her and handing her some shiny medal, they kicked her out of school, shunned her. She and her mother had to leave L.A just to find a school that would accept her. And her poor mother had put up with so much. She thought back to the conversation she and her mother had before they left.

_Oh, you're a good girl, Buffy, you just fell in with the wrong crowd. But that is all behind us now._

Yeah "wrong crowd" was right_. _

"_It is. From now on I am only going to hang out with the living. I mean, lively. People."_

Suddenly, Buffy realized she was being followed. Out of the corner of her eyes she caught a snatch of shifting shadow. A tree? But there was no wind. She moved a bit faster and was certain she heard soft, almost soundless footsteps. She began to walk a little bit faster, but not too obviously so. Then she turned, unexpectedly, down into an alley. She looked around swiftly for someplace to hide, finally spotting a metal bar above her. Leaping up easily, Buffy grabbed hold of it with both hands and kicked her feet up until she was practically doing a handstand on the bar.

A man entered into the alley below. A vampire, or just a normal creepy human? The man passed underneath the bar, and, without hesitation, Buffy leapt down and kicked him, hard, from behind. He toppled, and Buffy landed hard next to him, instantly pressing her foot into his chest to immobilize him.

The man looked like he was about to laugh at her, gazing up at her with sparkling dark eyes and twitching lips. "Is there a problem, ma'am?"

"Yeah, there's a problem." Buffy snapped, "Why are you following me?"

"I know what you're thinking. Don't worry, I don't bite."

Didn't bite? But if he guessed that she was expecting a vampire... or maybe it was just an expression. Perhaps he was only insisting he meant her no harm. Or maybe he was one of the Watcher's friends. Reluctantly, Buffy moved her foot, although she still held her fighters stance.

The man stood, instantly, in a fluid shift of muscles that would normally have had her mouth watering, if she wasn't so severely ticked off. "Truth is, I thought you'd be taller, or bigger muscles and all that. You're pretty spry, though." He reached up to rub at his probably aching neck.

"What do you want?" She was in no mood for games.

"The same thing you do."

With a sigh, Buffy dropped her fighter's stance. "Okay. What do I want?"

The man stepped forward. "To kill them. To kill them all."

God! Another one who wanted her to accept her duty again! This was _definitely _one of the Watcher's friends. Sheesh, why did he make others do the dirty work for him? And why wouldn't he give up? She put on a glib, careless voice.

"Sorry, that's incorrect. But you do get this lovely watch and a year's supply of Turtle Wax. What I want is to be left alone!"

Buffy whirled and started to stomp off. At first, she ignored the words he tossed after her. But when they actually got through to her brain she froze, turned, and started at him with wide eyes.

"Do you really think that's an option anymore? You're standing at the Mouth of Hell. And it's about to open."

Mouth of Hell? The Watcher hadn't said anything about that. Then the man reached into his leather jacket and pulled out a small box.

"Don't turn your back on this." He threw her the box, and Buffy caught it with ease. "You've gotta

be ready."

"What for?"

"For the Harvest."

"Who _are_ you?"

"Let's just say... I'm a friend." The man startled to slink off into the night.

"Yeah, well, maybe I don't want a friend." Buffy muttered darkly, clutching her fist around the box in her hand.

The man turned back and Buffy was infuriated to see that dancing amusement in his eyes again. "I didn't say I was yours."

Damn it! He _was _the Watcher's friend! Damn that man and all his interference... Buffy noticed the box again and opened it to reveal a silver cross on a chain. She lifted it from its container, and then glanced after the man, who was long gone at this point. What had she gotten herself into?

******

_All that Bloody racket. _

Giles was at the Bronze, watching people on the floor below him bouncing along with the upbeat music that screeched through the speakers. The band that was playing looked like they were having almost as much fun, jumping around without even a hint of dignity.

Then he spotted her. Buffy had entered the Bronze at last and she looked... beautiful.

Giles scowled darkly to himself. For him to be thinking along such lines... It was wrong. He was a lot older then her, and her Watcher none the less. If this was going to work, he would have to get such thoughts out of his head _permanently. _

Below, Buffy is swaying slightly to the music, looking a little lost. Some guy across the room waved, and Buffy started to lift her hand before she realized the man was waving at someone else behind her. Her hand shot down, and she looked embarrassed. Then relief flashed across her face as she spotted someone, and moved across the room towards the bar. Willow was sitting there, sipping at what was probably the least-alcoholic drink besides water that the bar served.

The two girls chatted happily for a while, and Giles was pleased that despite Buffy's flippant attitude and apparent obsession with clothes, she seemed more inclined to hang out with people like Willow – intelligent, _real _people – then people like Cordelia, whose biggest worry was what shoes she was going to wear to school the next day.

Then Buffy looked up and spotted Giles leaning over the banister on the balcony above. Annoyance and a slight weariness moved across her features and then were gone. She smiled at Willow, excused herself, and began pushing her way through the crowd towards the stairs. Willow seemed to mutter something to herself, and stared thoughtfully down at her drink as Buffy wandered away.

"So, you like to party with the students. Isn't that kinda skanky?"

Buffy had appeared at the railing next to him.

"Oh, right, this is me having fun." Giles scoffed. "Watching... clown hair prance about is hardly my idea of a party. I'd much rather be at home with a cup of Bovril and a good book."

The girl rolled her eyes. "You need a personality, stat!"

Giles pointed at the crowd below them. "This is a perfect breeding ground for vampire activity. It's dark, it's crowded... Besides, I knew you were likely to show up, and I have to make you understand..."

Buffy interrupted. "That the Harvest is coming. I know, your friend told me."

"What did you say?"

"The Harvest. That mean something to you? 'Cause I'm drawing a blank."

"I'm not sure. Uh... W-who told you this?"

"This... guy. Dark, gorgeous in an annoying sort of way. I figured you two were buds." Buffy frowned to herself. If that man hadn't been the Watcher's friend, who _was _he? Why was he hanging around and helping her? It didn't make any sense. And just whose friend was he?

"No. The Harvest. Did he say anything else?"

"Something about the Mouth of Hell." Buffy muttered dismissively. "I _really_ didn't like him!

Giles moved to stand a bit behind and to the side of Buffy, his hand on the bar next to her.

"Look at them, throwing themselves about, completely unaware of the danger that surrounds them."

A wistful tone entered Buffy's voice as she replied, "Lucky them."

"Or perhaps you're right. Perhaps there is no trouble coming, the signs could be wrong. It's not as though you've been having the nightmares."

Buffy was silent for a moment. Then she hurriedly said, "I didn't say I'd never slay another vampire. It's not like I have all these fluffy bunny feelings for them, I'm just not gonna get way extracurricular with it. You know, if I see one, sure I'll..."

Giles was the one to interrupt this time. "Will you be ready? There's so much you don't know about them, about your own powers. A vampire appears to be completely normal until the feed is upon them, only then do they reveal their true demonic visage."

"You're like a textbook with arms, I _know_ this."

"The point is, a Slayer should be able to see them anyway. Without looking, without thinking. Can you tell me if there's a vampire in this building?"

"Maybe..."

"You should know." Giles chided gently, "You should know. Even through this mass and this... _din_, you should be able to sense them. Well, try! Reach out with your mind. You have to hone your senses, focus until the energy washes over you, until you, you feel every particle of..."

"There's one!"

"Where?"

"Right there, talking to that girl." She pointed and Giles followed her gaze to a couple that were chatting and swaying to the music.

"You don't know..."

"Oh, please! Look at his jacket. He's got the sleeves rolled up, and the shirt! Deal with that outfit for a moment."

Giles frowned at it. It _did_ look different then what the others were wearing, but so what? "It's dated?"

"It's _carbon_ dated. Trust me, only someone living underground for ten years would think that was still the look."

Giles sighed. "But you didn't _hone_."

Buffy wasn't listening. She was staring down at the girl with a look of dawning horror. "Oh, no."

"Isn't that..."

"Willow."

"What's she _doing_?" Giles couldn't remember if he had ever seen Willow with a boy, other then her friends Xander and Jesse.

"Seizing the moment!"

"What?"

But Buffy was only gone. As Giles watched her plough through the crowd on her way to rescue Willow, he wondered if he should follow her, show her that he was not as inept at fighting off vampires as she probably thought he was. But no. It was only one vampire and this would be good for her. If she knew that he could fight too, she would try and push all her responsibilities as the Slayer onto him. And saving Willow might make her realize how much she was needed.

Several moments later, Giles found Buffy again. She was cruising through the crowd, her eyes flashing around, a distracted look on her face.

"That _was_ quick. Well done! I need to go to the library. This Harvest thing..."

"I didn't find them!"

Giles snatched Buffy's arm and turned her to face him.

"The vampire is not dead?"

"No, but my social life is on the critical list."

Reluctantly, Giles let go of her. "So, what do we do?"

"I'll take are of it!" She insisted.

"I-I-I need to come with you, yes?"

"Don't worry. One vampire I can handle."

And she was gone.

*****

**A/N:** Okay... that's the end of "Welcome to the Hellmouth", as far as Giles is concerned anyway. I realize I didn't change THAT much, but once Giles starts feeling more for Buffy, and their relationship develops, it will start being less and less like the show. Please review and let me know what you think. Constructive criticism is welcomed! For instance, did I use too much of the script from Buffy? I wanted it to be as much like the episode as possible, but mostly from Giles POV with a bit of Buffy... let me know. I hope you liked it.


	2. Chapter 2

**Hey Guys, I'm posting the second episode now. Thanks for all your feedback. Here goes "The Harvest". And I added a twist to make it less like the episodes. : )**

_In every generation there is a Chosen One. She alone will stand against the vampires, the demons and the forces of darkness. She is the Slayer._

Giles knew that something was wrong. He felt it, even as he poured over his books, looking for something – anything – about the Harvest. He had been trying to distract himself for over an hour now, and it simply wasn't working.

Had Buffy managed to save Willow from that vampire? And if so, why hadn't she at least let him _know_? After all this worrying, he would be furious if she were sleeping at home, safe and sound, without telling him anything.

Suddenly, Giles stiffened, and felt his eyes rolling back in his head. His mind went fuzzy and his head light, as if he were about to faint, something he had never done in his _life_. Although he didn't feel himself falling backwards, he could no longer see what was in front of him. At first, there was only black. Then, slowly, a picture emerged, showing him a mausoleum in one of Sunnydale's cemeteries. A huge man was crouched down in an open coffin, and as the picture zoomed in, Giles could see that the man was a vampire, about to bite... Buffy!

Then the vampire jerked back, and Buffy took the opportunity to kick him, sending him flying. The vampire has burned himself on a silver cross hanging around Buffy's neck. Not wasting a second, buffy jumps out of the coffin and runs out of the mausoleum.

She ran for a while in the darkened cemetery, and finally spotted another vampire, leaning over another victim that Giles could not see clearly. The victim is shouting.

"No! Get off!"

"Hey!" That was Buffy, and when the vampire whirled around, the Slater kicked him off his intended pray. The vampire scrambles to his feet and runs, with Buffy close on his tail. Willow – the "victim" – stood too, and raced after Buffy.

The two girls came across Xander, being dragged across the lawn by two vampires. Willow shouted out to him, and while the vampires were distracted by Willow, Buffy jumped in to the fight. She punched one and kicked another, then snaps a stick off a tree and plunges it into the vampires, who instantly turn to dust.

Willow was at Xander's side in an instant, her small face creased with concern.

"Xander, are you okay?"

Blearily, he sat up. "Man, something hit me."

" Where's Jesse?" Buffy demanded.

"I don't know! They surrounded us." Willow supplied.

"That girl grabbed him and took off."

"Which way?"

"I don't know."

Buffy stood and looked out across the cemetery. A pained look crossed her features, and she whispered, "Jesse..."

Giles snapped to without warning, suddenly finding himself standing in the library once more.

What the hell had happened? He glanced around him to make sure he really was in the library, and then sank into a chair at the table. An illusion. That was all. It was late and he was tired. That hadn't actually happened. It was an illusion, and nothing more...

*****

It was the next morning before Buffy, Willow and Xander went to the library. It had taken Buffy several minutes to convince Giles that she was okay, that they all were, and that he had no choice but to tell Willow and Xander everything. He had taken several moments after that to try and decide how to start. After all, how did one explain centuries of ancient history in a few minutes, especially to two teenagers who hadn't believed in vampires since they were five?

Giles looked over at the three teens as he paced in front of them. Buffy knew everything already, but was sitting there watching him with patient green eyes from under the icepack she held to her head. Xander and Willow looked much more anxious, but Giles could not blame them for that. Finally, he began to speak.

"This world is older than any of you know. Contrary to popular mythology, it did not begin as a paradise. For untold eons demons walked the Earth. They made it their home, their... their Hell. But in time they lost their purchase on this reality. The way was made for mortal animals for man. All that remains of the old ones are vestiges, certain magics, certain creatures..." Giles was relieved when he didn't stammer through his whole speech. Willow would have noticed instantly, because she was a frequent visitor to the library and had never heard him stammer. If Buffy was confused over the lack of stammering, she didn't show it.

"And vampires." Buffy added, seeming to decide she had gone too long without speaking.

"Okay, this is where I have a problem." Xander said, "See, because we're talking about vampires. We're having a _talk_ with vampires in it.

Willow, always the sensible one, pointed out, "Isn't that what we saw last night?"

Buffy chimed in again with a glib comment. "No. No, those weren't vampires; those were just guys in thundering need of a facial. Or maybe they had rabies. It could have been rabies. And that guy turning to dust? Just a trick of light." Xander gave her a look, and she grew serious once more. "That's exactly what I said the first time I saw a vampire. Well, after I was done with the screaming part."

Willow spoke up for the first time, her voice faint. "Oh, I need to sit down."

"You are sitting down." Buffy pointed out.

"Oh." Willow looked around, as if she had just noticed she was, indeed, sitting down. "Good for me."

Xander was frowning. "So vampires are demons?"

Giles explained. "The books tell the last demon to leave this reality fed off a human, mixed their blood. He was a human form possessed, infected by the demon's soul. He bit another, and another, and so they walk the Earth, feeding... Killing some, mixing their blood with others to make more of their kind. Waiting for the animals to die out, and the old ones to return."

" And that would be a what?

"For as long as there have been vampires, there's been the Slayer. One girl in all the world, a Chosen One."

Buffy was grinning. "He loves doing this part."

Stamping down the urge to smile back, Giles scowled instead and said, "Alright. The Slayer hunts vampires, Buffy is a Slayer, don't tell anyone. Well I think that's all the vampire information you need."

Buffy's grin only broadened, her eyes dancing.

"Except for one thing." Xander said, "how do you kill them?"

"You don't." Buffy said, all traces of humour gone. "I do."

"Well, Jesse's my..."

Buffy didn't let him finish. "Jesse is _my _responsibility. I let him get taken."

"That's not true!" Xander protested.

"If you hadn't shown up they would have taken us, too." Willow added and then looked a bit faint. "Does anybody mind if I pass out?"

"Breathe." Buffy reminded her.

" Breathe."

"Breathe." Buffy faced Giles again. "This big guy, Luke. He talked about an offering to the Master. Now, I don't know what or who, but if they weren't just feeding then Jesse may still be alive. I'm gonna find him."

"This big guy"? Was she referring to the large man that Giles had seen hunkering over Buffy in the crypt? So far everything they had told him was exactly like the "vision" Giles had, and he didn't like it one bit. In fact, he felt a bit sick. He had never been one for "visions". He dabbled lightly in magic, but visions were beyond him, and had never occurred before.

Willow spoke again. "This may be the dumb question, but shouldn't we call the police?"

"And they'd believe us, of course." Giles said quietly, not really paying attention.

"Well, we don't have to say vampires. We, we could just say that there's a bad man..."

"They couldn't handle it even of they did show up. They'd only come with guns." Buffy said gently.

The sound of Buffy's voice snapped Giles out of his baffled thoughts. "You have no idea where they took Jesse?"

"I looked around, but soon as they got clear of the graveyard, they could have just, voom!"

Xander looked alarmed. "They can fly?"

"They can drive."

"Oh."

"I don't remember hearing a car." Willow muttered, her face pinched together in concentration.

"Let's take an enormous intuitive leap, shall we, and say they went underground." Giles suggested.

Willow and Xander looked confused, so Buffy explained. "Vampires really jam on sewer systems. You can get anywhere in the entire town without catching any rays. But I didn't see any access around there."

Xander, amazingly enough, was the supplier of information now. "Well, there's an electrical tunnel that runs under the whole town."

"If we had a diagnostic of the tunnel system it might indicate a meeting place, it would, uh... I suppose we could go to the building commission."

"We _so_ don't have time."

Willow smiled, looking a bit sheepish. "Um, guys? There may be another way."

Only a few minutes later, Willow had the entire layout of the city up on one of the library computers. Buffy was pointing excitedly at the screen. "There it is!"

"That runs under the graveyard." Willow confirmed.

"I don't see any access."

Giles scanned the image up on the monitor and then looked down at Willow with raised brows. "So, all the city plans are just open to the public?"

Willow regained the same sheepish expression from before. "Um, well, in a way. I sort of stumbled onto them when I accidentally decrypted the city council's security system."

Xander grinned. "Someone's been naughty."

Giles wasn't listening to them anymore. His attention had been caught by Buffy's face, which was lined with stress and frustration. "There's nothing here, this is useless!" The girl cried, whirling from the computers.

"I think you're being a bit hard on yourself." Giles said gently, but Buffy was already shaking her head. "You're the one that told me that I wasn't prepared enough. Understatement! I thought I was on top of everything, and then that monster, Luke, came out of nowhere..."

Giles was about to assure her further when her face suddenly lit up, as if she were remembering something.

Xander noticed the expression too. "What?"

"He didn't come out of nowhere." Buffy breathed, "He came from behind me. I was facing the entrance, he came from behind me, and he didn't follow me out. The access to the tunnels is in the mausoleum! The girl must have doubled back with Jesse after I got out! God! I am so mentally challenged!"

"So, what's the plan?" Xander asked eagerly, "We saddle up, right?"

"There's no 'we', okay? I'm the Slayer, and you're not."

" I knew you'd throw that back in my face."

" Xander, this is deeply dangerous."

" I'm inadequate. That's fine. I'm less than a man."

Giles expression automatically flashed with anger. Xander had no right to be annoyed with Buffy. Slayers were not supposed to get civilians involved at all, much less in the actual fights. She was doing well. Of course, he wished she wouldn't be so hard on herself, but the Slayer was tough. He had not been certain of that until that morning.

Willow, thankfully, interrupted before Giles could reprimand Xander. "Buffy, I'm not anxious to go into a dark place full of monsters. But I do want to help. I need to."

Giles took the moment to add his piece. He could put the two to work, keep them out of trouble while Buffy went after Jesse. "Well, then help me. I've been researching this Harvest affair. It seems to be some sort of preordained massacre. Rivers of blood, Hell on Earth, quite charmless. I'm a bit fuzzy, however, on the details. It may be that you can wrest some information from that dread machine."

He realized everyone was staring at him with baffled and amused expressions.

He sighed. "That was a bit British wasn't it?"

Buffy smiled, "Welcome to the New World."

Giles allowed his lips to twitch and then turned to Willow. "I want you to go on the 'Net."

Willow grinned, relieved, and began to type. "Oh, sure, I can do that."

"Then I'm outta here. If Jesse's alive, I'll bring him back."

Giles watched her walk towards the door with worried eyes, and spoke before she reached it. "Do I have to tell you to be careful?"

She turned back and gave him a look, then turned around again and left without another word.

*****

Close to two hours later, Giles was bent over the notes that Willow had printed from the computer for him when he felt an all-too-familiar sensation. He his eyes rolling back in his head, his mind going fuzzy, felt lightheaded and dizzy. Then everything went black, and the picture began to form in his mind.

Buffy, Jesse and Xander were running down a dark tunnel. Giles was annoyed to see Xander there, but did not dwell on it. The three came to an intersection, looked right, and saw only glowing eyes in the darkness, accompanied by low growling.

"Wait, wait." Jesse said, sounding panicked, "They brought me through here, there, there should be a way up. I hope!"

He led them into a small enclosed chamber – a dead end.

Buffy whirled around to face the door. "I don't think this is the way out!"

"We can't fight our way back through those things. What do we do?"

Jesse grinned, "I got an idea." As they watched, his face crumpled and sharp fangs jutted from his gums. "You can die!"

There was a horrified silence. Xander's Xander looked sympathetic, but Giles was watching Buffy's face. Although she looked surprised, her expression was calculating.

"Jesse, man. I'm sorry." Xander said.

"Sorry?" Jesse asked, incredulous, "I feel _good_, Xander! I feel strong! I'm connected, man, to everything!"

Unnoticed by anyone but Giles, Buffy began to push against the door. She had noticed the vampires outside moving down the hall towards them.

"I can hear the worms in the earth!" Jesse cried, exuberant.

"That's a plus." Xander muttered.

"I know what the Master wants." The other boy continued, "I'll serve his purpose. That means you die. And I feed.

Buffy glanced over her shoulder, not stopping in her shoving against the door. "Xander, the cross!"

Remembering, Xander shoved his hand, clutching a wooden cross, into Jesse's face. Jesse backtracked slightly, a growl ripping from his throat. Xander frowned. "Jesse, Man. We're buds. Don't you remember?"

"You're like a shadow to me now." Jesse scoffed.

Xander set his expression determinedly. "Then get outta my face."

Jess knocked the cross aside and slammed the boy into the wall, then moved to face him threateningly. Buffy grabbed him from behind, tossed him easily into the hall with the rest of the vampires, and tried once again to shove shut the heavy door. Giles watched her efforts with a critical eye. She had to be really emotionally upset not to be able to close it with the same ease with which she had thrown the teenager. When they were clear-minded, there was very little a Slayer couldn't do.

Buffy called out to Xander to help, as the boy had been leaning uselessly against the wall where he had been pushed. Xander obeyed, and they shoved the door shut just as a vampire stuck in his arm in. The vamp hastily removed the limb as the door slammed shut. Buffy locked the door, and the vampires began to pound against it.

"We need to get out of here!" Buffy said hastily, stating the obvious.

"There is no out of here!"

Xander's flashlight flickered around the room, finally landing on a grate in the ceiling.

"Up there!"

Buffy leapt up onto something that was stacked against the wall and pried at the heavy grate. Meanwhile, the vampires are doing the same to the door, tearing it apart and bending it inwards in an attempt to smash it down.

Finally, the grate came off in Buffy's hand.

"Go!" She shouted to Xander.

_No, get yourself out first_. Giles felt ashamed the second he thought it. The Slayer must always put civilian safety first. That was the rule. He should know better, despite personal feeling. He frowned to himself. He had only known this girl for two days. Why did he care so much? Probably for the same reason – whatever that reason was – that he could see these events in "visions."

Buffy started to help Xander crawl into the vents, just as a vampire reaches in and pulls the latch on the door. Buffy scrambled into the duct after Xander, and the vampire came in after them. Xander and Buffy moved as quickly as they could through the twisting metal tunnels, the vampire scurrying after his prey with malicious glee as Giles watched with his heart in his throat. Xander finally reached a ladder and began to climb, both Buffy and the vampire right behind him.

Above ground now, Xander pulled himself from the hole, then instantly turned to help Buffy out. Buffy was half way out of the hole when the vampire grabbed her ankle and started to haul her back into the hole.

"No..."

Giles had meant to shout the word, but it came out a hoarse whisper.

"Xander, pull!" Buffy shouted.

Xander yanked Buffy's hand hard enough to haul her out into the sunlight. The vampire's skin began to burn and hiss, and a coil of smoke swirled from his flesh. The vamp let go and Buffy and Xander tumbled onto the ground.

Giles felt a stab of absurd jealousy, seeing them lying so close together on the ground. But he also felt grateful. He had expected Xander to be a burden to Buffy, not a help. And no matter how certain he was that Buffy would have managed without him, he was glad the boy had been there.

He noticed that the image was fading, ebbing away into the blackness again. Then the blackness faded until all that was left was the white paper and neatly typed black words on the desk in front of him.

He ignored the paper. The first thing on his mind was getting rid of these unexplainable feelings he was having for the Slayer. Noticing how pretty she was, reading and recognizing every expression, mood and thought when it flitted across that small face. Feeling _jealous _of a boy her own age that was clearly besotted, but as far as Giles could tell, no real threat. And there he went again. _Threat_? Since when were boys that Buffy may or may not be attracted to a _threat _to him? She was only sixteen years old, and his _Slayer. _

That explained it! _That _was why he was feeling these things, why he was so protective, why he could see these "visions". The bonds formed between the Slayer and her Watcher were no small thing... even if it was unusual for them to be so strong after only two days. The only things between himself and Buffy were the Slayer/Watcher bonds... like the bond between a father and a daughter.

But if that were the case, why was there a nagging sensation of disappointment mixed in with the relief at having solved the problem?

*****

Giles was bent over the papers once more, several minutes later, when the door opened again. His head shot up, the word out of his mouth before he could check it.

"Buffy?"

"It's just me." Willow said, walking across the library towards him. "So there's no word?"

"Ah, not as yet, no." He wished he could tell her that Buffy and Xander were okay, that they would be back in a few minutes, most likely. But he would have been unable to explain how he knew, and besides, he didn't want to be the one to break the news that Jesse was a vampire.

"Well, I-I'm sure they're... great." The girl muttered apprehensively.

To distract her, Giles asked, "Did you find anything of interest?"

Willow frowned. "I think, maybe... I surfed through the old newspapers around the time of that big earthquake back in '37? And for several months before there were a rash of murders." She handed him a new stack of papers.

"Great! I-I mean, well, not, not 'great' in a good way..." For Christ's sake he was beginning to sound like Buffy. "Um... go on?"

"Well, they sound like the kind you were looking for." She flipped through a couple of pages she still had in her hand. "Throat's, blood..." Willow looked slightly green.

Giles sighed. "It's all coming together. I rather wish it weren't."

A few minutes later, Willow was looking in one of Giles' books, and Giles was going over the papers Willow had brought when Buffy and Xander entered the room.

Willow gasped and spun away from the book. "Did you find Jesse?"

Giles closed his eyes, wishing he didn't have to be here for this, but at the same time wanting to comfort them.

"Yeah." Xander's voice was grim enough that a pained expression crossed Willow's face.

"Was he dead?"

"Worse" Buffy said with a soft sigh. She moved to sit on the edge of the tabl e. Giles had opened her eyes and was watching her face. When he could easily read the misery there, the disappointment, guilt and frustration, he was not amazed. Already, he was used to knowing everything she felt the moment she felt it. "I'm sorry, Willow." Buffy continued, "We were too late. And they were waiting for us."

Willow was silent for a moment, and then said earnestly, "At least you two are okay."

Xander kicked a waste basket violently. The noise startled Buffy, and she turned and stared at her friend with wide green eyes.

"I don't like vampires." He half-snarled. Of all of them, he had been closest to Jesse. "I'm gonna take a stand and say they're not good."

Buffy turned to Giles. "So, Giles! Got anything that can make this day any worse?"

Giles moved over to the whiteboard and set down his pen. Wishing more then anything he had good news to give her, he nonetheless said, "How about the end of the world?"

Buffy grimaced. "Knew I could count on you."

Giles hastened on. "This is what we know. Some sixty years ago, a very old, very powerful vampire came to this shore, not just to feed."

"He came 'cause this town's a mystical whos-it." Buffy suggested.

"Yes. The Spanish who first settled here called it 'Boca del Infierno'. Roughly translated, 'Hellmouth'. It's a sort of a portal between this reality and the next. This vampire hopes to open it."

"Bring the demons back." Said Buffy.

"End of the world." Xander added, still sounding angry.

"But he blew it!" Willow chimed in, "Or, I mean, there was an earthquake that swallowed half the town, and him, too."

"You see, opening dimensional portals is a tricky business. Odds are he got himself stuck, rather like a, uh, cork in a bottle."

"And this Harvest thing is to get him out." Xander checked, his voice a bit calmer now.

"It comes once in a century, on this night." Giles continued, "The Master can draw power from one of his minions while it feeds. Enough power to break free and open the portal. The minion is called the Vessel, and he bears this symbol."

He picked up a Dry-Erase marker and drew a three-pointed star on the whiteboard behind him.

"So, I dust anyone sporting that symbol, and no Harvest." Buffy quipped from where she still sat on the table's edge.

"Simply put, yes."

"Any idea where this little get-together is being held?"

Giles felt like smiling. Despite how exhausted and emotionally upset she must already be from the incident with Jesse, she was still ready to go and fight some more.

"There, there are a number of possibilities." He said.

"They're goin' to the Bronze."

Despite the absolute certainty in Xander's voice when he spoke the words, Willow still asked, "Are you sure?"

Xander scoffed. "Come on. All those tasty young morsels all over the place? Anyway, that's where Jesse's gonna be, trust me."

Giles snatched his coat and started towards the doors, pleased when the others automatically jumped up too.

"Then we should get there. The sun will be down before long."

"I gotta make a stop." Buffy said, even as she followed them. "Won't take long."

Giles frowned. "What for?"

"Supplies."

******

Standing in her room about half an hour later, Buffy mused over what she needed to bring with her. As she picked up a heavy black jacket, she mentally went over all the objects in her trunk. Her thoughts were interrupted by her mother's voice.

"Buffy?"

"Mom!"

Joyce frowned, but Buffy did not hear the discord in her voice. "You're going out?"

"I have to." Buffy put on the jacket in her hands.

"I didn't hear you come in last night."

"I was _really_ quiet."

Joyce's eyes filled with doubt. "It's happening again, isn't it? I got a call from your new principal. Says you missed some classes today?"

Buffy sighed. "I was running an errand." She tried to keep the annoyance from her voice, but she knew she had to hurry, and she could not start packing until her mother left.

"We haven't finished unpacking, and I'm getting calls from the principal."

It was Buffy's turn to frown. "Mom, I promise, it is _not_ gonna be like before. But I _have _to go." When had she accepted all of this again? Why was she letting this tear everything apart, _again_? Hadn't she promised herself – and her mother – that she wouldn't?

"No."

"Mom?!"

"The tapes all say I should get used to saying it. No."

Buffy's voice was now tinged with desperation. "This is really, really important."

"I know." Joyce said in a voice meant to mollify. "If you don't go out it'll be the end of the world. Everything is life or death when you're a sixteen-year-old girl."

Ha! If only she knew... "Look, I don't have time to talk about this..."

Even Joyce was starting to get annoyed now. "Buffy, you've got all the time in the world, you're not going anywhere. Now, if you wanna stay up here and sulk, I won't hold it against you. But if you wanna come down, I'll make us some dinner."

Joyce left, closing the door behind her. Buffy leaned against the door of her closet for a moment, closed her eyes, and let out a deep breath. For a moment she hesitated. Then she turned and opened the closet again, dragging the trunk out. Promises or no, there were lives at risk, and people that counted on her.

******

Buffy rattled the doors at the front entrance of the Bronze to no avail. The vampires must have already locked it.

"It's locked!" She groaned.

"We're too late!" Giles could hardly believe it. After all of that... too late?

Buffy scowled at him, but he could tell she was only worried, not angry, even as she protested, "I didn't know I was going to get grounded!"

"Can't you break it down?" Xander demanded.

"No, not that thing. Um...You guys try the back entrance, and I'll find my own way."

Knowing that Buffy's entrance would probably be a bit unorthodox – but also a lot faster - Giles agreed before anyone could protest. "Right. Come on."

"Uh, wait! Guys! Here!" Buffy pushed her bag into Willow's hands. "You get the exit cleared and the people out. That's all! Don't go Wild Bunch on me."

As if he was just going to stand there and let her fight alone? Then again, Giles was not entirely sure if he wanted her to know that he could fight yet. Well, he could be there in an instant if she were in danger. "Um, see you inside, then."

Giles, Xander and Willow took off, Giles leading the way. Willow tried the back door, which was also locked.

"We've gotta get in there before Jesse does something stupider than usual." Xander muttered to himself.

Giles' face went dark. "You listen to me! Jesse is dead! You have to remember that when you see him, you're not looking at your friend. You're looking at the thing that killed him."

Xander's face flashed with anger, but before he could argue, Giles froze, his face going pale.

_Not again. Three visions in 24 hours? _Why did he have to see what Buffy was doing now? He already knew. It seemed that these visions occurred when Buffy was in any kind of danger. If they were going to continue, he would have to learn how to control them. If they occurred when he himself were in a dangerous situation, he was in trouble. As his world faded around him, he heard Willow cry,

"Giles?"

"Migraine..." He whispered, "Give me a moment."

Then all went black, and the scene inside the Bronze arose in his mind.

Buffy was currently breaking a window above the stage of the Bronze. She crawled onto the ledge just inside, and looked down. Giles followed her gaze, to where the large vampire Buffy had fought the night before stood.

"I feel the Master's strength growing!" he cried, "I feel him rising. Every soul brings him closer! I need another!"

Buffy was whispering something. "The vessel."

Giles looked again, and saw that the girl was right – the very symbol he had drawn on the whiteboard was etched onto the vampire's forehead in what looked like blood.

A vampire on the upper level of the floor spotted Buffy and growled at her. Buffy's eyes flashed to him, then down at what was happening below, apparently unconcerned. Giles frowned; more worried then she, but turned his attention to the stage as well.

"Tonight is his ascension. Tonight will be history at its end! Yours is a glorious sacrifice! Degradation most holy." The vampire looked around. "What? No volunteers?!"

A blonde, female vampire was dragging someone up on to the stage. Giles vaguely recognized her, but didn't know her name. Buffy obviously knew her, though, because she breathed out a name. "Cordelia."

"Here's a pretty one." The blonde vampire said.

Cordelia screamed when she saw the vampire's face. The male vampire stroked a hand down Cordelia's cheek and leaned in towards her neck, teeth bared. Giles felt himself jolt in surprise along with the rest of them when a body landed on the stage, dropped from above. His eyes – along with everyone else's – shot to Buffy, who was leaning against the railing above. Giles smiled, proud. He had not even noticed she was fighting the vampire.

"Oh, I'm sorry, were you in the middle of something?" Buffy asked sweetly, putting up that airheaded front again.

"You!" The male vampire gasped.

"You didn't think I'd miss this. Did you?" She asked; disbelief in her tone.

"I hoped you'd come."

"Be right down!"

Buffy stepped away from the railing, but ignored the stairs, choosing instead to flip over the railing, landing lightly and easily on the pool table below. A vampire attacked her from the side, but she easily flipped over, grabbing a pool cue as she spun, and stabbed it into the vampire, who fell and turned to dust.

"Okay, Vessel boy." Buffy said cheerily, shrugging off her jacket. "You want blood?"

"I want yours!" The Vessel dropped Cordelia, who scrambled away. "Only yours!"

_Not a chance. _Giles scoffed to himself, and though he felt the undercurrent of worry he knew he would always feel, he was not confident that Buffy was going to be okay. Then again... why was he still here?

Buffy only shrugged. "Works for me."

Buffy ran across the floor and cartwheeled up onto the stage, instantly jumping up and kicking the Vessel, who crashed back into a pile of chairs on the stage. By the time he stood and growled at her, she was already in her fighting stance. The Vessel leapt towards her and aimed a punch that she easily ducked, spinning around to stand behind him. Again, he tried to punch her, and she blocked the blow, grabbed his arm, and kicked him several times in the stomach before he manages to escape. Pulling a stake out of nowhere, she lunged. The Vessel blocked her, snatched the stake, lifted her up, and threw her into a pile of boxes.

Then everything went black. Panicking, Giles forced himself to wait until his vision fully returned and his head stopped spinning before he tried to take in what was going on. Willow was standing at his side, a concerned hand at his elbow, while Xander had somehow managed to break in, and the door was standing wide.

"Hurry!"

They ran inside. All three sets of eyes flashed to the side, and they saw Buffy tangled up among the boxes, exactly as she had been in Giles' vision. Then she stands, so all three of them turned again to the horrified crowd.

Xander ushered them in a low voice. "C'mon! Let's go! C'mon! C'mon! C'mon! C'mon!"

Giles and Willow were at the other door now. "Hurry up! Come on! Through this door! Come on! This

way!"

Giles made sure the people got through swiftly and quietly, but one watchful eye was on the stage, and Buffy. Buffy, meanwhile, spun and punched the Vessel in the face, once more landing him in a pile of stuff. While he's dazed, Buffy's eyes shoot to Xander, who has just been grabbed by another vampire. Without hesitating, she grabbed a cymbal and tosses it, Frisbee-style. Xander saw what was going on and ducked, and the cymbal easily sliced the vampires head off.

"Head's up!" Xander said with a grin.

Buffy laughed, and then the Vessel grabbed her from behind.

"I always wanted to kill a Slayer!"

Giles forced his attention away. _Buffy can handle herself_. "One at a time! Quickly! Quickly!"

Then he spotted the blonde vampire.

"We're going to have to open the front as well!" He told Willow, but before he could move, Darla leapt on him, knocking him to the floor.

Buffy, on the stage, spotted this, and also saw Xander and Jesse facing off on the other side of the stage, even as she struggled in the Vessel's grip.

"Jesse! I know there's still a part of you in there." Xander cried.

Jesse snarled. "Okay... Let's deal with this. Jesse was an excruciating loser who couldn't get a date with anyone in the sighted community! Look at me. I'm a new man!"

Behind her, The Vessel spoke, his voice triumphant. "Master! Taste of this... and be free!"

He let out a sort of roar, and moved closer to bite Buffy's neck. Instantly, she snapped her head back, knocking him off of her and into a wall behind. She turned to face him.

"How'd it taste?"

Her worried gaze turned from the dazed vampire to Giles and the blonde vampire, who were still struggling. Then she saw Willow approach them from behind.

"Get off him!"

The vampire looked up, and Willow threw the holy water. She screamed as her face began to smoke, and she shot to her feet and ran out of the club, mingling with the stragglers.

Buffy's eyes shot to the other pair. Jesse had Xander up against the wall, and Xander had a stake pointing at Jesse's heart.

"Ooo! Alright. Put me out of my misery." Jesse scoffed. "You don't have the guts."

Someone ran past them, desperate to get out of the club. As they ran past, they bumped into Jesse from behind, pushing him onto the stake. Jesse turned to dust, and two other vampires grabbed Xander before he had a chance to react.

Unseen by Buffy, Giles had scrambled to his feet, and stood watching the events on the stage.

Looking away from Xander, Buffy snatched up a microphone and held it up threateningly towards the Vessel, who had stood.

"You forget." The vampire sneered. "Metal can't hurt me."

"There's something you forgot about, too. Sunrise!"

Sunrise? Giles frowned, then watched as Buffy threw the stand at the window behind the Vessel. He ducked, instantly, and the window broke behind him. A bright light poured inside the room, and the Vessel leaned back, arms thrown up, expecting to be burned. Giles realized it was a lamp at the same time that the Vessel did, but their reactions were quite different. Giles grinned, and the Vessel began to scream as Buffy stabbed him with her stake from behind.

"It's in about nine hours, moron!"

Giles felt like applauding. As the Vessel staggered to the edge of the stage and fell, turning to ash, Buffy turned bright eyes to the two vampires who still held Xander between them. Instantly, the vampires dropped the boy and ran out of the Bronze. Looking triumphant, Buffy hopped down, and Giles, Willow and Xander moved to her side.

"I take it its over." Giles said, as they were the only ones still in the Bronze.

"Did we win?" Willow asked.

"Well, we averted the Apocalypse. I give us points for that." Buffy replied.

Xander sighed. "One thing's for sure: nothing's ever gonna be the same."

*****

The next day, Buffy was walking along the path outside of the school, sucking on a lollipop, and she overheard Cordelia speaking to her friend about what had occurred at the Bronze.

"Well, I heard it was rival gangs. You know, fighting for turf? But all I can tell you is they were an ugly way of looking. And Buffy, like, knew them! Which is just too weird. I mean, I don't even remember that much, but I'm telling you, it was a freak show!"

"Oh, I wish I'd been there!"

"You should have been there. It was so creepy..."

Cordelia and the girl walked off, and Buffy went forward to meet Xander.

Seeing his bemused expression, she asked, "What exactly were you expecting?"

He looked baffled, now. "I don't know, something. I mean, the dead rose. We should at least have an assembly."

Giles and Willow met them, and they continued to walk.

"People have a tendency to rationalize what they can and forget what they can't." Giles explained to Xander.

"Believe me, I've seen it happen." Buffy added.

Willow shivered slightly. "Well, I'll never forget it, none of it."

"Good! Next time you'll be prepared."

"Next time?"

"Next time is why?"

Giles fought down a smile. "We've prevented the Master from freeing himself and opening the Mouth of Hell. That's not to say he's going to stop trying. I'd say the fun is just beginning."

"More vampires?"

They stopped walking.

"Not just vampires." Giles said almost gleefully. "The next threat we face may be something quite different." His eyes flashed to Buffy's.

"I can hardly wait!"

Trying to look stern, he said, "We're at the center of a mystical convergence here. We may, in fact, stand between the Earth and its total destruction."

Buffy grinned at him, "Well, I gotta look on the bright side. Maybe I can still get kicked out of school!"

Buffy, Xander and Willow started to walk away, with Giles staring after them, trying to pretend it wasn't one of them in particular his eyes followed down the path.

"Oh, yeah, that's a plan." Xander agreed, "'Cause lots of schools aren't on Hellmouths."

"Maybe you could blow something up." This suggestion was from Willow. "They're really strict about that."

Buffy shook her head slightly, waving the lollipop, "I was thinking of a more subtle approach, y'know, like excessive not studying."

Amused, Giles turned back towards his library. "The Earth is doomed!"


	3. Chapter 3

**EPISODE THREE – WITCH **

_In every generation there is a Chosen One. She alone will stand against the vampires, the demons and the forces of darkness. She is the Slayer._

"This is madness! What can you have been thinking? You are the Slayer! Lives depend upon you!" Giles paced anxiously in front of Buffy. "I make allowances for your youth, but I expect a certain amount of responsibility, and instead of which you enslave yourself to this, this..." He stopped pacing and looked at her. "Cult?"

"You don't like the color?" Buffy quipped.

I d..." Giles sighed. He didn't want to admit how adorable Buffy looked, standing in front of him in that ridiculous cheerleading outfit. He gave her as exasperated sigh instead and began stacking some books onto a cart. "Do you ignore everything I say as a, as a rule?"

"No, I believe that's your trick."

Giles pushed the cart up to the counter, and Buffy skipped lightly in front of him and posed with the pompoms. Giles forced himself to look away from her.

"I told you, I'm trying out for the cheerleading squad!"

"You have a sacred birthright, Buffy." He said, "You were chosen to destroy vampires, not to... wave pompoms at people. And as the Watcher I forbid it." He moved away from her, before it became too hard for him to do.

"And you'll be stopping me how?"

Giles sighed, sat on the edge of the table, and crossed his arms. "Well, I... By appealing to your common sense, if such a creature exists."

Buffy sighed too. "I will still have time to fight the forces of evil, okay? I just wanna have a life, I wanna do something normal. Something safe."

And how could he argue against that? Everyone wanted to feel safe, and the life of a Slayer was always fraught with danger. So how was he supposed to tell her no? Even under normal circumstances, it would have been difficult. Considering his unorthodox and unexplainable feelings for the Slayer, it was impossible.

*****

He should have known better.

Only a couple of hours later, Buffy was back in the library again, this time with Willow and Xander. Her "something safe" had already proved to be the exact opposite. During tryouts, one of the cheerleaders' hands had burst into flame.

Currently, Xander and Willow were leaning against the table as Buffy paced much as Giles had done earlier that day.

"I've been slaying vampires for more than a year now, and I have seen some pretty cringeworthy things, but... nobody's hands ever got toasted before."

Giles stepped out of the cage and moved towards them. "I imagine not."

"So, this isn't a vampire problem."

"No."

She turned completely to face him. "But it is funky, right? Not of the norm?"

"Quite. Spontaneous human combustion is, is rare, and, and scientifically unexplainable, but there have been cases for hundreds of years. Usually all that's left is a pile of ashes."

"That's all that would have been left if it hadn't been for Buffy." Willow pointed out.

"So, we have no idea what caused this." Xander summed up. "That's a comfort."

"But that's the thrill of living on the Hellmouth!" He sat on the edge of the table again and his voice became excited. "There's a veritable cornucopia of, of fiends and devils and, and ghouls to engage." He realized everyone was staring at him, and looked huffy. "Pardon me for finding the glass half full."

"Any common denominators in cases of spontaneous combustion?" Buffy asked.

"Uh, rage. In most cases the person who combusted was, was terribly angry or, or upset."

"So maybe Amber's got this power to make herself be on fire." Xander said. "It's like the human torch, only… it hurts."

"I need to get the skinny on Amber. Find out if she's had any colourful episodes before." Buffy started to the door.

"That means hacking illegally into the school's computer system. At last, something _I _can do!" Willow jumped up, thrilled. She and Xander stood to stand in front of Buffy as Giles watched, frowning slightly.

"I'll ask around about her." Xander offered.

Buffy was frowning too. "You guys don't have to get involved."

They looked baffled, as if this had never occurred to them.

"What d'ya mean? We're a team! Aren't we a team?"

"Yeah! You're the Slayer, and we're, like, the Slayerettes!"

She bit her lip, uncertain. "I just don't like putting you guys in danger."

"Oh, ha, I laugh in the face of danger." Xander paused, and admitted, "Then I hide until it goes away."

She thought for a moment, then said, "Okay, just walk softly, at least until we know a little more. I mean, what if Amber isn't causing these problems herself?"

"Well, then we have to determine who or what did, and, uh, deal with it accordingly."

******

The next day, after practice, Buffy and Amy, a cheerleader friend of Willow's that she had gotten to know, walked down the hall together. Amy was upset over messing up in practice, but although Buffy tried to comfort her, she knew she was distracted. Giles had been acting so strange. She hadn't known him very long, so it was possible he always acted like that. But this morning, when she had shown him her cheerleader outfit, he had shied away as if he was a vampire and she was holding a vat of holy water. Did the outfit really repulse her Watcher that much? How worried was he that she would be unable to perform her Slayer duties and cheer at the same time?

"That's my mom!"

Buffy looked where Amy was pointing. They had come to a stop in front of a display case, and in it were several flags and cheerleading trophies. One was the image of a young woman. Buffy leaned in closer to read the inscription.

"No! Catherine Madison. Get down with your bad self!"

Amy looked wistful. "Her nickname was 'Catherine the Great'. She took that team and made them tri-county champions. Y'know, no one's ever done that before, or since. She and my dad were Homecoming King and Queen. They got married right after graduation."

Buffy smiled sappily. "That's kinda romantic."

Amy scoffed. "Well, he was a big loser. Never made any money. Ran off with Miss Trailer Trash when I was twelve."

"Okay, that part's less romantic. My folks split up, too."

"Drag, huh? Uh, he left my mom with nothing. She put herself through cosmetology school. Bought me everything I ever wanted." Amy smiled and shook her head. "And never once gained a single pound.

Knowing the Amy had once had a problem with her weight, Buffy walked around to face the other girl. "Uh, she sounds really great, Amy, but, um... it doesn't mean that you need to lock step as far as this cheerleading thing."

"She was the best!" Amy protested, "And I can't get my body to _move_ like hers! I choked in there so bad!

"No, Amy, you did fine."

Amy frowned, "I'm gonna get changed."

"Wait! No..."

Amy left as Willow walked up. "Hey, Amy! Is she okay?"

"No, she's, she's wiggin' about her mom, big cheer queen back when."

Willow nodded. "Yeah, her mom's kinda..."

"Nazi like?"

"Heil." The other girl agreed, "If she gains an ounce she padlocks the fridge and won't eat anything but broth."

"So, mommy dearest is really... Mommy Dearest?"

"There's a bitter streak. But Amy's nice. We used to hang in Junior High. When her mom would go on a broth kick, Amy'd come over to my house and we'd stuff ourselves with brownies!"

They began to walk down the hall. "Hey, any word on Amber?"

"Nothing thrilling." Willow admitted, "Average student. Got detention once, for smoking. Regular smoking... with a cigarette, not, like, being smoky."

"Hmmm"

"All pretty normal."

"So we just have to wait and we'll see what happens. Maybe nothing will."

******

Giles was in the library when he felt the vision coming. Even as he felt his vision of the room fading around him, he spun to a window, as if he could see where Buffy was and why she was in danger this time. Then everything went black, and the picture came clear in his mind.

The Driving teacher, Mr. Pole, was standing in front of one of the test cars with Cordelia. Currently, Buffy was no where to be seen, but that didn't stop his eyes from searching for her.

"Nice of you to join us, Cordelia." Mr. Pole was saying, "We didn't keep you waiting or anything, did we? It's your turn to drive." He looked at the other students. "Okay, people, let's buckle up."

Cordelia, looking dazed, moved slowly around the car. "I don't wanna drive today,

Mr. Pole."

The teacher scowled. "You've flunked Driver's Ed. twice already. Show me some moves, or you'll be taking the bus to college."

They get in the car, and Giles finally spotted Buffy, standing to the side of a school bus, watching with confused eyes.

The engine on the car started. There was a long pause, and finally it was put into drive. The car was thrown backwards, crashed into some signs, stopped, and then jerked forward.

Mr. Pole: Slow down. Slow, slow, turn right! Turn right!

Cordelia had obviously lost control. The car was racing along the course, knocking down cones. Giles spotted Buffy starting to run. The car crashed through a fence, and then some bushes, and into the street before finally coming to a halt. Another car managed to avoid them. Even as everyone –including Cordelia – crawled from the car, Buffy ran faster.

Now Cordelia was wandering, still obviously dazed, in the middle of the street. A delivery van is careening towards her, but it doesn't slow or stop.

Cordelia spotted the can and screamed, even as Buffy leapt over the Driver's Ed car and grabbed Cordelia, rolling out of the way. The van clipped the car instead, pulling off the door.

Giles found his heartbeat slowly returning to normal as he saw the two girls were unharmed.

"Oh, my God, I, I can't see anything!" Cordelia screamed.

"It's, it's okay, it's..." Buffy looked down at Cordelia. "Oh God!"

"What's happening? I can't see anything!"

Her eyes have gone completely white, the irises gone.

Giles felt himself coming to. When he finally saw the library around him, he started to arrange his thoughts. Buffy, Xander and Willow would be in any moment to demand to know what was going on. He intended to be able to answer them.

** **

"Witchcraft. Blinding your enemy to disorient and disable them is… its classic!"

Xander, Willow and Buffy were sitting at the table. Xander groaned to himself.

"First vampires, now witches. No wonder you can still afford a house in Sunnydale."

"Why should someone want to harm Cordelia?" Giles asked them.

"Maybe because they met her?" Willow suggested and then flushed. "Did I say that?"

"And setting Amber ablaze?"

"Yeah, those guys don't hang..."

"They're both cheerleaders." Buffy realized.

Giles frowned at her. Could she think of nothing else? "Someone doesn't like cheerleading."

"Or likes it too much."

"Amy!" Willow cried.

"Amy." Buffy agreed.

Xander raised an eyebrow. "So, you guys are leaning towards Amy?"

Buffy explained. "She's desperate to get on that team, and I've got this feeling she'd do just about anything to make her mom's dream come true."

Giles was still frowning. "Uh, let me make sure I have this right. This witch is casting horrible and disfiguring spells so that she can become a cheerleader?"

Buffy sighed. "I think you're underestimating the amount of pressure a parent can lay on you. If you're not a picture perfect carbon copy they tend to wig."

Giles' confused expression only deepened as he looked over at Buffy. She sounded wistful. Did that have anything to do with why she hadn't wanted to accept her job as Slayer?

"Cheerleading was kind of her mom's last hurrah." Willow added.

"Look, we still have to stop Amy. We should grab her and..." Xander trailed off when Giles interrupted him.

"I think we should be sure she's the witch before we arouse her suspicions. She's, she's capable of some fairly unpleasant things."

Buffy stood. "Okay, alright, so, you're in high school, you are desperate to make the team and please your mom, so you turn to witchcraft. What's the first thing you're gonna do?"

"Check out the books on witchcraft!"

Willow and Buffy hurried to the computer. Xander flushed.

"Uh, no! No, that would be the_ last_ thing you would do! You don't wanna leave a paper trail. Forget that!"

"It'll just take a minute."

Xander moved to stand behind them, looking a little desperate.

"We don't have a minute! Cheerleaders are in danger. Buffy's in danger. You were the first alternate; you are on the team now that Cordelia's out. You could be next. We gotta get you to a safe house." Giles' face went dark as Xander grabbed Buffy's arm and started to pull her away.

"Xander..." Willow warned.

Xander released Buffy. "Yeah."

Willow breathed out, then looked at the screen and exchanged an amused glance with Buffy. "'Witches: Historic Roots to Modern Practice.' Checked out by Alexander Harris." She read.

Grinning, Buffy read, "'The Pagan Rites', checked out by Alexander..."

"Alright, alright, it's not what you think."

"You like to look at the semi-nude engravings?"

"Oh, well, uh, I-I guess it _is_ what you think."

"Have you all quite finished?" Giles demanded. "We have to find a conclusive test. There may be something in here..." He was flipping through a book in front of him. "Yes, this should do it. You'll need some of her hair, a little quicksilver and some aqua Fortis."

"Well, that's just mercury and nitric acid." Willow supplied, "You can get that in the science lab."

Giles read from the book. "'Heat ingredients and apply to witch, and if a spell has been cast in the previous 48 hours, witch's skin turns blue.' Hmm." He shut the book. "Oh, and you'll need some Eye of Newt."

*****

The next morning, after a conclusive test that proved Amy was a witch, Buffy woke up feeling chipper. When her alarm went off, she smashed it to get it to be silent, then frowned at the pieces.

"Ooops."

She dressed in her cheerleading outfit and flounced downstairs to where her mom was making juice. She entered the room singing.

"Macho, macho, man! I want to be a macho man. Macho... Oh, hey, juice!" She snatched the glass and drank. "Mm... Quality juice. Not from concentrate!"

Joyce raised her eyebrows. "You're in a good mood."

"I am!" Buffy chirped, "I'm on the squad, which is great, 'cause I feel like cheering and leading others to cheer." She spotted the second glass. "Ooo, hey, juice!"

She drank.

Joyce spoke hesitantly, bringing up their fight of the day before. "Listen, honey, about yesterday, I really..."

"Mm!" Buffy waved her hand dismissively. "That is totally yester. Besides, it's not like you were wrong, y'know. I did get kicked outta school. I'm just wacky that way!"

Joyce sighed. "Still, I just want you to know that, despite the problems you've had, I really..."

Buffy interrupted. "Mom, you just don't get it. And, believe me, you don't want it. Y'know, there are just some things about being a Vampire Slayer that the older generation..."

"A what?"

Inside, Buffy froze in terror. What was she _doing_? Why was she being so silly? And why was she just blurting out whatever came into her head? She didn't seem to be able to stop herself, but luckily Outside-Buffy seemed too hyper to explain.

"It's a... long story."

"Buffy, are you feeling well?"

"What? Oh, I'm, I'm fine, y'know? What, like, I can't be in a good mood? Is it, like, a new house rule? Fine, y'know? It's just fine, fine, fine, 'cause..." She began to sing, bobbing her head and leaving the kitchen. "I'm a macho, macho man! I want to be a macho man! Macho, macho man! I want to be a macho man!"

*****

During cheerleading practice, things got worse.

"Five, Six, Seven, Eight!" The girl next to Buffy chanted.

The cheerleaders went into their routine and Buffy danced happily, shouting, "Turn up the music!"

The volume went up obediently, and they continued. Then Buffy stamped down hard on the girl's foot.

"Ow! Get it together Buffy! We have a game in less than four hours!"

Xander and Willow came in, and Outside-Buffy was unable to hide her enthusiasm. "Willow! Xander! My buds are here! I love my buds! Hi!" She noticed everyone staring. "Oh…"

She got into the line with the others, and the routine continued.

Xander turned to Willow. "Is it me, or is Buffy a bit looped?"

Willow looked concerned. "We better get her outta here."

"Yeah, before she..."

Buffy, supposed to grab the girl next to her and help her spin, threw her too hard, straight into the gym wall.

"Hurts someone." Xander concluded uselessly.

"Did I do that?" Buffy asked, running to see if the girl was okay.

The girl stood and shoved Buffy. "You are _so_ out of here!"

Willow and Xander came running up and grabbed Buffy's arms.

"It's not her fault!"

"She's on medication."

Buffy frowned. "What?"

"Well, obviously not enough. Who's our next alternate?" Amy was suddenly behind the girl. "Oh. Amy, you just made cheerleader."

Buffy protested. "No, no, no. You don't want her, she's a wi..."

Xander slapped his hand over Buffy's mouth and finished for her. "A wise choice indeed!"

Xander and Willow pulled Buffy out of the gym and into the hall, supporting most of her weight between them.

"She's a witchy!" Buffy muttered.

"Buffy..."

"I just got kicked off the team, didn't I?"

Xander reassured her. "I don't think it was your fault."

Buffy grinned and leaned her head on Xander's shoulder. "Hmm, I know you don't, that's 'cause you're my friend. You're my Xander-shaped friend! Do you have any idea why I love you so, Xander?"

Willow spoke up. "We gotta to get her to a..."

Xander frowned and looked eagerly down at Buffy. "Let her speak!"

"I'll tell you! You're not like other boys at all."

"Well..."

"You are totally, and completely one of the girls!" She turned to Willow. "I'm that comfy with him."

Willow grinned.

"That's great." Xander muttered, and they continued down the hall.

"Any other guy who'd give me a bracelet, they'd... wanna date me, and be like a..." Buffy closed her eyes against a wave of nausea. "Oh! I, I don't feel so good."

"Buffy?"

Buffy collapsed.

*****

Giles had never been so terrified. Buffy was leaning back in a chair, as Willow supported her head and held a cloth to the girl's forehead.

"We've gotta get her to a hospital!" Willow said, almost as worried as he was.

"They can't help her. This is a bloodstone vengeance spell." His voice was slightly choked. He took Buffy's pulse with trembling fingers. "Hits the body hard like a, a quart of alcohol, and then it e-eradicates the, uh, immune system."

"A vengeance spell, like she's trying to get even with Buffy?" Xander asked.

"'Cause she knows I know she's a witch." Buffy agreed, her voice weak and slightly slurred.

"The others she just wanted out of the running. You she intends to, um..."

"Kill?"

Giles closed his eyes and nodded against the pain in his heart.

"How much time do we have?" Willow asked.

Looking down into Buffy's face, Giles stammered, "Oh, uh, I'm sure, uh..."

Buffy interrupted him. "Truth. Please."

"Couple of hours... Three at most."

"Well, how do we reverse the spell?" Xander demanded.

Giles stood from the table. "Well I, I've been researching that, and, uh, we can reverse all the spells if, um..." He took off his glasses and rubbed at the bridge of his nose, "...we can just lay our hands on, on Amy's spell book."

"And if we can't get a hold of it?"

"Well, the other way is to cut the witch's head off." Giles put his glasses back on.

Xander's hand shot into the air. "Show of hands!"

Buffy protested from her chair. "It's not Amy's fault. She only became a witch to survive her mother."

Xander rolled his eyes. "Look, I don't care why, I just care that you go on breathing."

Ignoring that comment, Buffy turned to Giles, "where would she be casting these spells?"

"Oh, she needs a, a sacred space. A-a-a pentagram, um, large pot."

"Her home. Okay. Help me up."

Giles was the first to move, but he stopped himself so quickly that none of the others realized. As Willow and Xander helped Buffy up, Giles wondered where this sudden overwhelming wave of protectiveness had come from. Buffy was the Slayer. Since when had she needed to be protected, especially by her Watcher?

"We'll just go to her house and we'll get her book." Buffy murmured, straightening from the chair.

"Okay, we'll go with you."

"Uh, no! You guys stay here and keep an eye on Amy."

Giles, deciding the hell with it, let the protectiveness take over and took Buffy gently from Xander and Willow. "And keep her away from the science lab." He added, "We'll need it to cast our counter-spells."

Giles led Buffy carefully out into the hall, through the school and towards the parking lot. A strong, instinctive part of him wanted to pick her up and carry her. But judging by the way she was acting, she would not appreciate it. Even though she was weak and trembling, she took each step determinedly, struggling to keep up with Giles despite his slow pace. Giles took the opportunity – as they walked to the car, and then drove in silence – to study her face and try and figure out why he was having these unexplainable feelings towards the Slayer. She was so far from what he had imagined she would be. Practically the opposite. He had not known her that long, and yet he felt like he had known her his entire life. What was it about Buffy Anne Summers that fascinated him so much?

Giles started in surprise when he realized he had pulled up to Amy's house. Taking Buffy's arm to help her out of the car and up the walk, they went together to the front door. Now that he had been startled out of his thoughts, his concern for Buffy grew. She looked exhausted, and slightly drugged, as if she wasn't all there.

A tall woman with red-ish brown hair and gentle, frightened eyes opened the door.

"Who are you? Wha, um, uh, is there something wrong?"

Assuming this was the girl's mother, Giles spoke. "Mrs. Madison, we need to talk to you about your daughter."

"I'm not allow... You'll have to come back later."

She tried to close the door, but Giles pushed past her and intro the house, anger boiling under a calm facade.

"Excuse me!"

"What?!"

Giles helped Buffy carefully into the living room, his eyes gentle on her face. "You alright?" As he sat Buffy on the couch, he snapped at the woman, "Your daughter is meddling with something very dangerous, are you aware of that?"

"Uh, I don't know what you're talking about."

"Oh, I think you know only too well."

"You've got to go. She's gonna be home soon and you..."

Giles interrupted her, his anger unleashing as he motioned towards Buffy, who seemed to be getting weaker by the moment. "This girl is very sick. Now you will shut up and you will listen to me! Your daughter has access to some very powerful Magicks, and somehow your obsession with cheerleading has made..."

Amy's mother interrupted him this time, her voice high with incredulity. "I don't care about cheerleading! It's not my fault she's doing stuff."

Giles almost snarled at her. "As her mother you should assume _some_ responsibility for her actions."

She laughed, the sound on the edge of hysteria. "Well, you know, these kids today! I..." She seemed to calm down slightly and said, in a rush, "She's out of her mind. Ever since dad, her dad... left I can't control her."

Giles saw Buffy slowly standing out of the corner of his eye, but he was frowning at Amy's mother.

"You're afraid of her?"

"Amy?"

The woman looked at Buffy and paled slightly, looking guilty and relieved at the same time. Giles turned his frown to Buffy, confused.

"Are you Amy?"

Giles' eyes shot back to the woman. "I don't understand."

"She switched! She switched your bodies, didn't she?"

The woman looked away.

"Good Lord!" Finally, Giles understood, and his eyes widened in shock. This, he hadn't expected.

"She wanted to relive her glory days." Buffy murmured, her voice soft with sympathy

Amy met Buffy's eyes evenly. "She said I was wasting my youth. So she took it."

Buffy and Giles exchanged a glance, and Giles moved wordlessly to help her back onto the couch, sitting carefully beside her, as close as he dared. After a moment, Amy sat down as well and continued speaking.

"I didn't know anything about her powers. I mean, when dad was here they would fight and yell and he would... call her a witch and... I mean, I would, just thought he meant... Oh, God, when he left I wanted to go with him. But she wouldn't even let me call. She went crazy, I mean, she'd lock herself upstairs for days, and she was always coming down on me, telling me I didn't deserve to have it so easy, and that I didn't know... how hard it was to be her, and... I guess she showed me, huh?"

Buffy, although she was getting even weaker, reached over and took Amy's hand. "Amy, it's gonna be okay."

Seeming to gain confidence from Buffy's words, the girl added, "A few months ago, I woke up in h... her bed! I didn't know

where I was, and... then I looked in the mirror..."

"She locked herself upstairs?" Giles asked.

"Yes."

"Where?"

Giles stood and motioned for Buffy to stay. She searched his expression for a wordless moment, then nodded and sank onto the cushions of the couch, closing her eyes. For a moment, Giles hesitated. Then he spun away from the slowly dying girl, and moved through the house towards the stairs he had seen when they entered. He took the stairs up as far as they went: all the way to the attic, ignoring Amy's protests.

"Don't! If she finds out I've been here she'll kill me!"

Still ignoring her, Giles entered the room and looked around. There was a large cauldron in the center, with a rack of hanging dolls beside it. As he moved around the cauldron, he spotted two dolls bound together: the body switching spell. He lifted them in his hand, and exhaled.

"My God! I believe we can reverse your mother's spell. Well, all of them, in fact."

Forgetting her fear, Amy's eyes widened. "You could? Really, you could?"

"We need to find her books. There'd be specific volumes she'd need for this kind of casting."

Once more, his eyes shot around the room, searching. They landed, finally, on the trunk in the corner, and he moved to it without a second's hesitation, knocking the items on top to the floor with a careless wave of his hand.

"Collect those dolls, and, uh, any other personal effects..." He instructed Amy, and then gasped as a black cat leapt out of the trunk he had begun to open. "Ah! Nice kitty..." When his heartbeat was back under control, he opened the trunk further and pulled out a book. "Let's see what you were guarding. Ah, yes! This is it."

As Giles and Amy walked back down the stairs, Giles was terrified to see that Buffy had grown even weaker. As they hurried towards her, she mustered the energy to open her eyes and mutter, "Did we find?"

"We found." Giles assured her, "Come on."

He helped Buffy up from the couch, and she swayed dangerously, tried to take a step. Her knees buckled.

"We're going to the school." Giles said, "And you're coming with us."

Not waiting for the girl to argue, Giles lifted Buffy into his arms, and strode from the house.

********

Later, in the science classroom, Buffy was laid out against one of the long tables, as Giles and Amy started the spell on a counter closer to the doors. Amy was attempting to cut a frog, a squeamish look on her face.

"Right! Here we go!" Giles enthused, trying desperately to hide his terror. Buffy was getting weaker and weaker, and nothing was working. Even the feeling of carrying in her arms had not made him feel any better about the situation. Nothing would, other then Buffy being completely well. He began to recite as he stirred the potion.

"The center is dark. Centrum est obscurus. The darkness breathes. Tenebrae respiratis. The listener hears. Hear me!"

"Oh, it's... it's working!" Amy gasped.

Giles picked up the book next to him and began to read.

"Unlock the gate. Let the darkness shine. Cover us with holy fear."

Unnoticed by Giles, Amy staggered back and covered her face.

"Show me..."

The lights went out.

Uncaring, Giles lifted his arms and continued to chant, feeling slightly ridiculous.

"Corsheth and Gilail! The gate is closed! Receive the dark! Release the unworthy! Take of mine energy and be sated!"

Without hesitation, he plunged his hands into the mixture.

Suddenly, the door started shuddering as someone yanked on it from the other side. Giles pulled his hands out, and he and Amy turned towards the door.

"Be sated! Release the unworthy!" Giles cried.

Buffy's eyelids are fluttering now, and her head is lolling against the sweater Giles had used as a makeshift pillow.

"Release!" Giles cried.

An axe stuck through the door, as Amy's mother in Amy's body began to chop through the door.

"Release"

Buffy has stopped moving. As Amy's mother makes a hole in the door, she reached through and opens the door, walking straight across the room towards Buffy, axe raised.

Giles' mind was screaming _no_! He was certain he was about to see his Slayer killed. Out loud, he yelled, "RELEEEEASE!"

Amy's mother, Catherine, lifted the axe high above her head, but freezes when a bright flash of light fills the room. Suddenly Amy again, she looks around confused, automatically lowering the axe. Buffy stirs, and then sits up, her strength returned. Giles looked over at her and breathed a sigh of relief. His heart felt tight in his chest. _Buffy was okay. _

"Buffy?" Amy is confused.

"Amy?" Buffy asked cautiously, seeing the axe in the girl's hand.

Before either could say anything else, Catherine lunged at Buffy from the side, from where she had been standing near Giles. Once more, Buffy lies still, and a wave of hot fury plunged through Giles. He stepped forward, his hand pointing towards Catherine, the words halted by his overwhelming anger. This woman had hurt Buffy. She had tried to kill her.

"You... you..."

Catherine growled at him like a feral animal and looked at him. A force of magic smacked into him, throwing him back, and then throwing a table against him. and looks at him. Giles felt himself blacking out, going unconscious.

_No... Buffy... _

Even as he struggled to remain conscious, he felt the familiar dizzy feeling and felt a wave of relief. He would still be able to watch over her. The image unfolded behind his closed eyes.

Amy was standing across from Catherine.

"You! You little brat!" Catherine hissed.

Amy hesitantly lifted the axe. "Mom! Please!"

Carelessly, Catherine stuck out her hand, and the axe flew into her hand.

"How dare you raise your hand to your mother? I gave you birth. I gave up my life so you could drag that worthless carcass around and call it living?" She slammed the axe into a table. "You've never been anything but trouble. I'm going to put you where you can't make trouble again!"

Buffy suddenly jumped to her feet from behind Catherine. "Guess what?"

Catherine turned.

"I feel better!"

Giles made a mental note to tell Buffy "more hitting, less talking". Right after he told her never _ever _to scare him like that again.

As if listening to Giles' thoughts, Buffy punched Catherine hard enough to send the woman flying through the air. Catherine landed on a table, rolled, and knocked over a shelf full of bottles. Then pulled herself to her feet, unscathed.

"That body was mine! Mine!"

"Oh, grow up!"

Catherine growled again, and shot her arm out in front of her, towards Buffy. Buffy flew backwards much as Catherine had, crashing into the wall. Buffy crumpled, but was on her feet again before Giles could worry, twisting her head slightly to shake off the pain.

Catherine began to chant.

"I shall look upon my enemy!"

Her eyes turned pitch black.

"I shall look upon her and the dark place will have her soul!"

Thinking quickly, Buffy's eyes flashed around the room. She spotted a pole holding up a mirror above her.

"Corsheth, take her!"

Without warning, Buffy executed a perfect standing hook kick, effectively knocking the pole out from under the

mirror and letting it flop down. Catherine's spell spun from her hands, smacked into the mirror, and bounced back wards her. The magic crackled powerfully around her, and the woman let out a scream. Then the magic vanished, and so did Catherine.

For Giles, the scene went black.

When he opened his eyes, Buffy's concerned face was the first thing he saw, leaning over him with her hand stretched out to help him up. He smiled up at her and took her hand.

"Well, that was, um, interesting." He said, unable to think of anything else to say.

"You guys okay?"

"I'm fine!" Amy assured her.

"I assume the, uh, all the spells are reversed. It was my first casting, so..." Giles breathed out. "I may have got it wrong."

Buffy shook her head and her smile gentled. "You saved my life! You were a god!"

Giles flushed slightly, and Amy said,

"Well, I didn't think you'd pull it off."

Without warning, Xander burst in and wrapped his arms around Amy.

"I got her! I got her! Cut her head off!"

Buffy struggled not to laugh. "Xander, what are you doing?"

"Saving you?"

"Get your hands off of her."

"But she's evil."

"It wasn't exactly her." Giles explained.

"I was my mom." Amy added.

"Oh!" As if that explained it all, Xander released her and stepped back.

Then Willow came through the door, wielding a bat.

"Where is she?"

Xander grinned. "Uh, hey Willow! It's cool!"

"It is?"

"Yeah, I took care of it."

Giles and Buffy exchanged an amused glance, and they all left the room together.

**A/N: **Please Review!!!

I hope you enjoyed!

ALSO, I decided that I would read and review on every story (If I know the category that is) of any person who reviews my stories. Warning, though: I will be completely honest : )


	4. Chapter 4

Hey Guys. Because these chapters are fairly easy to write, I'm going to try and spin through a bunch of them really fast to finish season one… I'm going to try and update one a day. Episodes without a lot of Giles in them will be short. You may also notice that I added a bit of my own stuff to this one. Not much though. Please review!!!

********

EPISODE 4 - TEACHER'S PET

_In every generation there is a Chosen One. She alone will stand against the vampires, the demons and the forces of darkness. She is the Slayer. _

Before leaving the library that morning, Giles glanced at Buffy's school schedule. She had recently pinned a copy of it up in his office "in case of emergencies", and although this could hardly be defined as an "emergency" Giles was glad he had it now. It had been three days since he had spoken with Buffy, and he felt distinctly like a drug addict going through withdrawal.

Biology. With Dr. Gregory. Science 109.

As he started down the hall, Giles tried to run through a list of excuses in his head. What possible reason could he have for coming to see Buffy? As far as he knew, there was no immediate danger in Sunnydale she needed to be alerted to. Perhaps just a friendly reminder to keep up her training? He made a face at the lame excuse, but didn't have the time to come up with another one. He was already standing outside 109.

Inside, Dr. Gregory was just finishing up his class.

"Alright, chapters six through eight by tomorrow, people." There was a pause, then he spoke again, "Can I see you for a moment?"

Giles stood to the side as the student piled out of the room. Buffy was not one of them. It must have been her that Mr. Gregory had asked to see. But why? In the second time since he had heard Buffy Summers was coming to Sunnydale High, Giles felt the urge to eavesdrop on a conversation. For a moment, he debated. Then he leaned in closer to the closed door.

"I gather you had a few problems at your last school?"

"Well, what teenager doesn't?"

"Cut school, get in fights, burn down the gymnasium... Principal Flutie showed me your permanent record."

"Well, that fire, I mean, there was major extenuating circumstances. Actually, it's, uh, kinda funny!" Buffy gave a fake laugh that had Giles rolling his eyes outside the door.

"Can't wait to see what you're gonna do _here_."

All humour faded from Giles expression, and he scowled. His face went even darker as he heard Buffy's soft, defeated reply.

"Destructo Girl. That's me."

Again, Giles thought back to when he had first met Buffy. She had seemed so determined not to re enter the Slaying game. What must it be like for her, to have to live this life, unable to tell the people who mattered why she did all these seemingly-crazy things?

"But I suspect it's gonna be great."

Buffy sounded as baffled as Giles felt. "You mean, 'great' in a bad way?"

"You have a first-rate mind and you can think on your feet. Imagine what you could accomplish if you actually did the..."

"...the homework thing."

"The homework thing. I understand you probably have a good excuse for not doing it. Amazingly enough, I don't care. I know you can excel in this class, and so I expect no less. Is that clear?"

Giles felt the anger fade. He _liked _Dr. Gregory, after all.

"Yeah! Sorry."

"Don't be sorry, be smart. And please don't listen to the principal or anyone else's negative opinion about you. Let's make 'em eat that permanent record. Whadaya say?"

He looks up at Buffy and gives her a little smile. She smiles back.

"Okay! Thanks."

"Chapters six through eight!"

Buffy came through the door, almost crashing into Giles.

"Whoa! Giles. Sorry. Didn't see you. What are you doing here?"

"Um… Looking for you, actually, I wanted to speak with you…" About what? He had no idea. Luckily, Buffy interrupted him.

"Dr. Gregory is so nice, Giles...Even though he doesn't know everything... he still thinks I can keep up and do well." She spoke hesitantly, and it was clear to him that she wasn't used to speaking of academic success so hopefully.

Giles smiled gently down at her, thrilled when she returned the smile.

Neither of them looked back into the classroom behind them. If they had, they might have seen Dr. Gregory turning off the lights in order to better focus on the slides under his microscope. And they might have seen the large green mantis leg that closed around his neck...

*****

After a rather confusing night at the Bronze, where Angel had shown up, Buffy was walking up to the school with Giles, relaying Angel's cryptic message.

Giles bit into his apple, and mumbled, "That's all he said? Fork Guy?"

"That's all Cryptic Guy said: Fork Guy."

"I think there are too many 'guys' in your life." Giles laughed, but inside he felt a fierce surge of jealousy. Buffy always got a strange look in her eyes when she spoke of her "cryptic guy", and he didn't like it one bit. Before he could get too broody, however, they came across Willow, sitting on the bench and scrawling in a notebook.

Giles reassured Buffy as she silently greeted her friend. "I'll see what I can find out." He looked up towards the sky and made his voice low and dour. "God, every day here is the same."

Buffy and Willow grinned, and Buffy spoke, "Bright, sunny, beautiful, how ever can we escape this torment?"

As Buffy sat down next to Willow, Giles sniffed in mock distain. "Really."

Giles turned to leave, and almost bumped into Xander. "Good morning."

"Mornin'. Guess what I just heard in the office? No Dr. Gregory today. Ergo, those of us who blew off our science homework aren't as dumb as we look." He snapped Willow's book closed as Giles wandered away.

_Too bad Mr. Gregory is away... Buffy can learn a lot from that man. _

******

Later that day, Giles was working in the back office of the library, going over some books about "fork guys". He had come across some interesting information on 'fork guy', but wanted to make sure he had as much knowledge as he could on the subject before Buffy returned. He had been dimly aware of the bell ringing for lunch shortly before, but paid no attention to the sound. Buffy, Xander and Willow would come in as soon as they had finished eating, and he needed to be prepared.

Then, however, he heard a commotion in the hallway. It sounded like someone was running towards the library. He stood and left the office, instantly recognizing those footsteps. He had just reached the door when Buffy burst through them, her face streaked with tears, her small body shuddering as she struggled to control her crying.

Giles caught her in his arms.

"Buffy? Buffy, what's wrong? What happened? Are you hurt?"

She couldn't be. That was impossible. If she were hurt, or in any kind of danger, he would have had a vision wouldn't he? They may have been annoying, and he may have wished that he had better control over them, but he had never wished for them to go away. Knowing when Buffy was in danger had been an unexpected gift.

She was shaking her head, but was still trying to get herself under control, and did not answer. Luckily, at that moment, Willow and Xander burst through the doors, their faces dry and expressions concerned.

"Buffy? Are you okay?"

"What happened?" Giles demanded, pulling Buffy a bit closer to him as she began to quiet.

He knew it must be something bad for Buffy to break down. She was used to dealing with a lot of stuff that would completely destroy a weaker person. Buffy was strong, he could think of no reason for her to have this sudden breakdown, no matter how quickly she was pulling through it.

"Dr. Gregory." Willow explained, her eyes full of misery. "He's...he's dead. He was found in the kitchens." She gulped slightly, and then added, "Without his head."

"Good Lord." Reluctantly, Giles let Buffy take a step back from him. He scanned her expression, and she looked away sheepishly, wiping her eyes. "I'm so sorry, Buffy. I know you liked him."

When she didn't answer, he led her over to the steps and then went to get her a glass of water. Willow sat down next to her.

Giles handed the glass to Buffy. "Here. Drink this."

"No, thank you." She murmured, even as she took the glass from him and took a tentative sip.

Xander spoke up from where he stood behind Giles. "I've never seen.."

Giles looked at the younger man.

His voice trembling, Xander whispered, "I've never seen anything like... that was new."

"Who would wanna hurt Dr. Gregory?" Willow asked.

Giles rubbed the bridge of his nose. "Uh, he didn't have any enemies on the staff that I'm aware of. He was a civilized man. I liked him."

"So did I."

"Well, we're gonna find out who did this." Willow insisted. "We'll find them and we'll stop them."

Buffy nodded. "Count on it."

"What do we know?" Giles asked.

"Oh, not a lot, um..." She sniffed and wiped a tear from her nose. "He was killed here on campus. I'm guessing the last day we saw him."

"How do you work that out?"

"He didn't change his clothing."

A painful reminder that she may have been the last one to see him alive.

"This is a question that no one particularly wants to hear, but... where did they put his head?" Xander pointed out.

Willow shuddered. "Good point. I _didn't_ wanna hear that."

"Angel!" As Buffy stood and walked to the table, Giles couldn't help but scowl at the name. "He warned me that something was coming."

"Yes. Yes he did, didn't he? I wish I knew what he meant. I've been trying to gather more information about the Master, our, uh, local vampire king. There was one oblique reference to a, a, a vampire who displeased the Master and cut his hand off in penance."

"Cut off his hand and replaced it with a fork?"

"I don't know what he replaced it with." Giles admitted.

Xander spoke up again. "So, why would he come after a teacher?"

"I'm not certain he did. There was an incident two nights ago..."

He walked over to the counter, picked up a newspaper and returned with it, showing it to Buffy.

"...uh, involving a homeless person in Weatherly Park." Giles continued. "He was practically shredded, but, uh, nothing like Dr. Gregory."

Buffy glanced at the paper. "Fork Guy doesn't do heads."

"Not historically."

"And Dr. Gregory's blood wasn't drained."

"So there's something else out there?" Xander asked, incredulous, "Besides Silverwareman? Oh, this is fun, we're on Monster Island."

"We're on a Hellmouth. It's a center of mystical convergence." Buffy said. Giles grinned proudly at her wording, and she shrugged, "Guess it's the same thing."

"Well, unpleasant things do gravitate here, it's true, but, uh, we don't know there's anything besides this chap. He's still our likely suspect."

"Where was that guy killed? Weatherly Park?"

Giles' grin faded and he advanced towards her. "Buffy. I know you're upset, but, uh, this is no time to go hunting, not until we know more. Please promise me you won't do anything rash?"

"Cross my heart."

*****

That night, Giles tossed and turned in bed. Something was wrong. He could not sleep, and felt there was a very good reason for it. A few minutes ago, he had begun playing scenes from his day back in his mind, and now he narrowed in on Buffy's expression as she had said, "Cross my heart".

That was not a sincere promise. There was no sign of honesty on her face, only a distracted concentration. She hadn't really been listening to him at all.

"Dammit."

Giles swung his legs over the side of the bed. There was no way he would be able to sleep while there was the possibility of Buffy forgoing her promise and putting herself in danger. Then his heart froze in his chest as he felt the now-familiar symptoms of the vision coming on. Buffy _was _in danger. Damn that girl, why couldn't she have listened to him for once? He fell back against the bed as darkness fell around him, and the image of Weatherly Park rose behind his eyes.

_Buffy was climbing over the fence into the park. She walked through the park, her eyes looking through the darkness. _

_A figure moved towards Buffy, and she and Giles gasped in unison. It was just a homeless man however, and he croaked out, "Shouldn't be out here at night, little lady. Dangerous."_

_He left, and Buffy noticed another homeless person under a bench. She checked him out, but he was merely sleeping. She continued to look around. At the same time, Giles and Buffy noticed a bunch of shrubbery covering an access hole to the sewers. Fearlessly, she moved it aside. _

_Fork Guy leapt out at her without warning. Giles cried out, but Buffy was silent as she stumbled backwards. Fork Guy tried to slice her with his claw, but missed, and Buffy burst into action, slamming her arm into his gut, then into his back, and dodging another swipe. Almost faster then Giles' eyes could follow, she punched him in the face, delivered a roundhouse kick to his haw, then punched his face again, evading another swing and kicking him. _

_Furious, Fork Guy lunged forward, but Buffy was unfased. She simply grabbed his arm and flipped him on his back, then moved into stake him. He rolled away and onto his feet, so she kicked him down once more. _

_Suddenly, there came the sound of voices, and the flash of flashlights coming over the hill. _

"_Hold it! Police! Did you see that? I got nothing here!"_

_The vampire took off and Buffy tore after him. _

"_I heard it. Spread out. Let's go over here. This way, this way. Alright..."_

_Buffy chased the vampire to the fence that encircled the park. There was a woman - who Giles recognizes vaguely as the substitute science teacher – walking home along the darkened sidewalk, a bag of groceries in her arms. The vampire followed her along the fence for a moment, and then climbed over. _

_Buffy reached the fence, and her fingers closed uselessly over the metal, as she watched the vampire advance upon the woman. Natalie, the sub, turned to face the vampire. Before Giles' and Buffy's startled eyes, the vampire spotted Natalie, hissed, and ran across the street, vanishing under a manhole cover. Unconcerned, Natalie turned again and continued her walk. _

The vision faded.

"Good Lord."

******

The next day, Buffy came to relate the previous night's events to Giles.

"You went hunting last night." As if he hadn't already knew that.

"Yes."

He walked into his office, Buffy following after him.

"When you assured me you wouldn't." He took a sip of tea, keeping his expression calm. He was not truly angry with her, but he couldn't help feeling that something horrible could have happened to her. Then he frowned over the lip of the mug. She was the Slayer for God's sake. She could handle a forked vampire, with or without his worrying.

"Yes, I lied, I'm a bad person, let's move on."

Giles turned from her and opened the filing cabinet. "Did you see someone with a fork?"

"More like a jumbo claw."

He turned to face her again, trying to make his voice surprised. "Oh. Well, uh, at least you're not hurt."

"And I saw something else. Something much more interesting than your average run-of-the-mill killer vampire."

"Oh?"

"Do you know Miss French, the teacher that's subbing for Dr. Gregory?"

Giles smiled. "Yes. Yes, she's lovely." Buffy gave him a look, and Giles stilled, shock rippling through him. Behind that disdainful look, he could have sworn he saw jealousy in Buffy's clear green gaze. There was no way, though. No way could she be jealous, not over him. Shaking such thoughts from his mind, he put the files away and added, "In a, a common, extremely well proportioned way."

"Well, I'm chasing Claw Guy last night, and Miss _Well Proportioned_ is heading home. The Claw Guy takes one look at her and runs screaming for cover."

Because he was as baffled over the events from the night before as Buffy sounded, it was not difficult to infuse confusion into his tone as he said, "He what? Ran away?"

"He was petrified."

"Of Miss French?"

"Uh-huh! So I'm an undead monster that can shave with my hand... How many things am I afraid of?"

"Not many." Giles admitted, "And not substitute teachers, as a rule."

"So what's her deal?"

"I think perhaps it would be a good idea if we kept an eye on her."

"Then I better get to class."

Giles watched her leave, and hugged his mug of tea closer to him. In his mind, he began to dissect that strange look in her eyes. It made him feel slightly pathetic, but he could not resist.

******

Less then an hour later, Buffy and Willow had returned to the library.

"No, I'm not saying she craned her neck. We are talking full-on Exorcist twist." Buffy said as they entered.

"Ouch!"

"Which reminds me," she continued, "how come Blayne, who worked with her one-on-one yesterday, isn't here today?"

"Inquiring minds wanna know." Willow mused.

Buffy turned to Giles. "Any luck?"

Willow sat down in front of the computer and began tapping away.

"Um, I've not found any creature as yet that strikes terror in a vampire's heart." Giles said with a sigh.

"Try looking under things that can turn their heads all the way around."

"Nothing human can do that."

"No, nothing human. There are some insects that can. Whatever she is, I'm gonna be ready for her." Buffy turned and hoped up the stairs towards the stacks.

Smothering a grin, Giles took off his glasses. "What are you going to do?"

"My homework."

Willow smiled at her distractedly, but Giles just waited for her to reappear.

A second later, she did. "Where are the books on bugs?"

Giles laughed.

******

Buffy came out of the stacks once more, this time with a book in her hands. "Dig this: 'The praying mantis can rotate its head 180 degrees while waiting for its next meal to walk by." She slammed the book shut. "Ha!" When only silence greeted her, she said, "Well, c'mon, guys. Ha!"

"Well, Miss French is sort of big. For a bug?" Willow muttered.

"And she is, by and large, woman shaped." Giles added.

Buffy sighed, as if resigning herself to the fact that she was working with idiots. Moving down towards them, she said, "Okay. Factoid 1: Only the praying mantis can rotate its head like that. Factoid 2: A pretty whacked-out vampire is scared to death of her. Factoid 3: Her fashion sense _screams_ predator."

"It's the shoulder pads." Willow agreed.

"Exactly."

"If you're right, then she'd have to be a shape shifter or a perception distorter." Giles said, and then brightened. "On a helpful note, I had a chum at Oxford, Carlyle, advanced degrees in entomology mythology."

"Entoma-who?"

"Bugs and fairy tales."

"I knew that."

"If I recall correctly, poor old Carlyle, just before he went mad, claimed there was some beast..."

The computer beeped and Willow spoke, her expression panicked, "Buffy, 911! Blayne's mom called the school. He never came home last night."

Giles frowned. "The boy who worked with Miss French yesterday?"

"Yeah!" Willow's eyes were wild, "If Miss French is responsible for... Xander's supposed to be helping her right now! He's got a crush on a giant insect!"

Buffy sighed. "Okay, don't panic, I'll warn him. But I need you to hack onto the coroner's office for me."

"Well, what are we looking for?"

"Autopsy on Dr. Gregory. I've been trying to figures out these marks that I saw on his corpse... I'm thinking they were teeth. And, uh, these cuddlies?" She pointed to a picture of a mantis "Should definitely be brushing after every meal. And you were saying something about a beast?"

Giles went towards his office, "Oh, uh, yeah, I just need to make one transatlantic telephone call." He stopped and turned back. "Um, this computer invasion that Willow's performing on the coroner's office, one, one assumes it is entirely legal?"

"Entirely!" Willow said, at the same time Buffy said, "of course."

Giles blinked and then said, "Right. Wasn't here, didn't see it, couldn't have stopped you."

"Good idea."

******

"Frankly, madam, I haven't the faintest idea what time it is, nor do I care. Now, unlock his cell, unstrap him, and bring him to the telephone immediately. This is a matter of life and death!"

Ignoring Giles' voice on the phone in the next room, Willow tapped wildly at the computer.

"Got it! Coroner's report, complete with... Yuk! ...color pictures."

Buffy looked over her shoulder. "There *are* teeth marks. Which match perfectly the one insect that nips off its prey's head."

"Okay, I-I don't like this."

"Huh! It's the way they feed, head first. It's also the way they mate. The female bites off the male's head while they're..."

"No, no, no!" Willow interrupted her explanation, "See? Xander's, I like his head! I-it's where you find his eyes, and his hair, and his adorable smile..."

Buffy smiled. "Hey, hey, take it easy, Willow. Xander is not in any immediate danger. I saw him leave school. He's probably safe at home right now."

In the office, Giles continued his conversation. "I-I understand, Carlyle. Yes... I-I'll take every precaution. Uh, absolutely, i-i-it sounds exactly like the creature you described. Y-you were right all along about everything. Well, n-no, you weren't right about your mother coming back as a Pekinese, but... uh... Try to rest, old man. Yes... Ta! Bye now!"

He hung up the phone and walked into the main part of the library, where Willow and Buffy were still leaning over the computer.

He hangs up and comes out of his office. Willow and Buffy are at the PC.

"Dr. Ferris Carlyle spent years transcribing a lost pre-Germanic language. What he discovered he kept to himself until several teenage boys were murdered in the Cotswolds. Then he went hunting for it."

Buffy looked up at him. "It being..."

"Uh, he calls her a She-Mantis. This type of creature, the Kleptes-Virgo, or, or virgin-thief, appears in, in many cultures. The Greek sirens, the Celtic sea maidens, who, who tore the living flesh from the bones of, um..."

"Giles, while we're young!"

"Uh, well, basically the, uh, the She-Mantis assumes the form of a beautiful woman and then lures innocent virgins back to her nest."

Buffy frowned. "Virgins? Well, Xander's not a, uh... I mean, he's probably..."

Willow shot to her feet, worry etched across her features, "...gonna die!" She hurried to the phone.

"kay, okay, so this thing is breeding and we need to find it and snuff it." Buffy stood facing him. "Any tips on the snuffing part?"

"Uh, Carlyle recommends cleaving all body parts with a sharp blade."

"Slice and Dice."

Giles' brow creased at her wording, but now was not the time to talk to her about the way she spoke. Besides, if he could admit it, at least to himself, he thought it was adorable. "Well, whatever you do, it had better be certain and swift. This beast is extremely dangerous."

"Well, your buddy Carlyle faced it, and he's still around."

"Yes, in a straitjacket, howling his innards out day and night."

"Okay, Admiral, way to inspire the troops!"

"Sorry..."

They were interrupted by Willow, who had hung up the phone and rushed over. "Xander's not home! He told his mom he was going to his teacher's house to work on a science project. He didn't tell her where."

"See if you can get her address off the substitute rolls." Buffy said, taking charge, "And you need to record bat sonar, and fast!"

Giles looked baffled. "Bat sonar, right. What?"

Buffy explained as she led Giles to the stage, "The mantis hears sonar, its entire nervous system goes kaplooey."

"Where am I gonna find the..."

"In the vid library? There're no books, but it's dark and musty, you'll feel right at home, go!" When Giles left, she sighed and said, "Guess I'll handle the armory."

******

A few minutes later, Buffy came from the cage to see Willow printing something.

"Getting the address." She said.

"Great! Giles?"

Giles held up the tape recorder. "Recording bat sonar is something soothingly akin to having one's teeth drilled."

"Let's roll!"

As they headed for the door, Willow said,

"According to Miss French's personnel records, she was born in 1907. She's, like, 90 years old!"

"And extremely well preserved!"

Buffy scowled.

******

Ten minutes later, Giles, Buffy and Willow were pulling up in front of Miss French's house. They all piled out of the car and ran up to the door.

"What now, exactly?" Giles asked, "We can't just kick the door down."

"Yeah, that _would_ be wrong." Buffy lifted her foot to kick the door, but before she could an old woman answered the door.

"Hello, dear! I thought I heard... Are you selling something? Because I'd like to help you out, but... You see, I'm on a fixed income."

Buffy blinked. "I'm looking for Miss French."

"I'm Miss French."

"Natalie French, the substitute biology teacher?"

The old woman laughed. "Goodness, that's me! I taught for over thirty years. I retired in 1972."

Buffy turned to face Giles, frustration in her eyes. "I can't believe this! She used Miss French's records to get into the school. She could be anywhere!"

"No, dear! I'm right here!"

They sighed and turned away, walking down towards the car.

"What do we do now?"

"Abject prayer and supplication would spring to mind." Giles muttered.

Buffy was thinking furiously though. "I saw her walking past this park with her grocery bags. She lives in this neighborhood."

"I'm gonna start banging on doors." Willow actually started towards a random house, before Buffy stopped her.

"Wait, no, we do *not* have time for that!"

"We have to do something!"

"We will."

Buffy led Giles and Willow to the manhole cover she had seen the vampire disappear into a night before. Without hesitation, and with a ridiculous ease, she lifted the cover, reminding Giles once again how strong she was.

"I won't be long."

She vanished down the hole.

"W... Buffy?" Giles started after her in amazement.

Willow's patience did not last long before she called down into the hole, "come on, Buffy!"

The bushed nearby shook, and strange noises emitted from it. A moment later, Buffy came though, pushing Claw Guy in front of her, his arms tied behind his back. For the first time, Claw Guy got a good look me Buffy.

"You!"

"Me!"

She began shoving him down the street, forcing him to lead the way. Willow and Giles trailed after them, eyes wide.

Buffy was practically yelling at the vampire. "Come on! Come on, where is she? Which house is it? I know you're afraid of her, I saw you! Come on!"

Suddenly, as they passed a house, Claw Guy began to fall back, leaning into Buffy as if desperate to get away.

"Come on. What? What is it? This is her, isn't it, this is her house? This is it! Better than radar!"

She released the ropes that bound his hands together, and instantly, Claw Guy sliced through the ropes.

"Buffy!"

He swung his claws towards Buffy, but she leaned back and he missed. The sharp lean backwards, however, caused Buffy to trip and fall backwards over the small picket fence that encircled the yard. Claw Guy leapt the fence after her, forcing Buffy to scramble backwards. Then she broke off one of the pickets and thrust it into Claw Guy's heart. He fell over, dead, and Giles breathed out a deep sigh of relief.

******

In the basement, Xander was tied up in front of Natalie in her praying mantis form.

Natalie was laughing. "Kiss me! Kiss me!"

Xander leaned away from her, horror and disgust marring his features. "Can I just say one thing? HEEEELLLLP! HEEEELLLLP!"

Suddenly, Buffy smashed through the window.

"Uh, hey, o-over here, hello! In the cage!"

Buffy ignored Blayne, who stood in a huge cage in the corner, and tugged her bag through the window, then scrambled over towards Natalie and Xander.

"Let him go!"

Willow and Giles climbed in through the window behind her as Buffy began to spray Natalie with the bug spray. Taking use of the giant bugs distraction, Willow ran to release Blayne.

"Help me! Help me!" Blayne yelled, making much more noise then Xander, who was more obviously in danger.

"Giles! Get em outta here!" Buffy cried.

She pulled the tape recorder and a machete from her bag, wincing as Blayne cried out for help again behind her.

Just as Natalie began to recover from the bug spray, Giles began undoing the straps holding Xander up. Buffy closed in on the mantis.

"Remember Dr. Gregory? You scarfed his head? Yeah, well, he taught me, you do your homework, you learn stuff. Like what happens to your nervous system when you hear this!"

Dramatically, she slammed the button on the tape recorder. After a short pause, Giles' voice floated through. Buffy stared at the device in shock.

_...extremely important to file not simply alphabetically..._

_That's enough to destroy _anyone's _nervous system_.Buffy thought, rolling her eyes. "Giles!"

"I-it's the wrong side!"

Natalie knocked the tape recorder and machete from Buffy's hands. Giles

Watched the recorder fly past him, and then scrambled after it as Buffy leapt over a slashing claw. Natalie tries to trip Buffy, but she jumps over her claw. Xander came out of nowhere, spraying Natalie again and distracting her once more. Buffy, however, pushed him, trying to get him out of danger, and Natalie knocked Buffy over. As Buffy kicked the giant mantis away from her, she found the machete at the same time Giles found the recorder. Giles played the tape, and Natalie began to flail as the pain hit her.

"Bat sonar." Buffy explained, her voice slightly breathless. "Makes your whole nervous system go to Hell. You can go there with it!" This time nothing happened to destroy her dramatic moment, and she leapt forward, slashing Natalie to bits with the machete. Winded, she turned away from the bug to see Giles, Willow, Blayne and Xander standing behind her.

"Well, I... I'd say it's deceased."

"And dissected."

"You okay?" Xander asked Buffy.

"Yeah."

"Just for the record, you were right, I'm an idiot, and God bless you!"

Remembering that she had tried to warn Xander, and Xander had accused her of being jealous, Buffy lowered her head.

"And thank you guys, too."

"Yeah, really!" Blayne added.

Giles looked sourly at Blayne. "Pleasure..."

"I'm really glad you're okay." Willow insisted, "It's so unfair how she only went after virgins.

Xander laughed, and looked around at them, then said, "What?"

Ignoring him, Willow said, "I mean, here you guys are, doing the right thing, the smart thing, when a lot of other boys your age..."

"Flag down on that play, babe." Blayne protested, "I am _not_..."

Giles interrupted him. "Well, you see, that's the She-Mantis' modus operandi. Uh, she only preys on the pure."

Xander sighed. "Well, isn't this a perfect ending to a wonderful day!"

Blayne stuttered for a moment and then cried, "My dad's a lawyer. Anyone repeats this to anybody, they're gonna find themselves facing a lawsuit."

Xander rolled his eyes, "Blayne! Shut up!"

Willow had an adoring expression on her face as she looked at Xander. "I don't think it's bad, I think it's really..."

Xander held up the machete and Willow's eyes widened almost comically.

"...sweet! It's certainly nothing I'll ever bring up again."

Xander began to hack away at the mantis nest as the others watched silently.

Over the heads of the others, Buffy looked across at Giles, and their eyes met.

They had survived yet another one, and everything was once more as it should be.

******

I'm going to stop doing every episode, coz some are boring, Buffy and Giles wise.


	5. Chapter 5

Okay, now is the time when I get really impatient and skip a bunch of episodes ^ ^ So here's "Puppet Show"

******

_In every generation there is a Chosen One. She alone will stand against the vampires, the demons and the forces of darkness. She is the Slayer. _

The Sunnydale High School auditorium was bursting with activity, both on stage and back stage. Something in the darkness watched this activity with gleaming, hopeful eyes as the students practiced their various acts.

One girl, Emily, was doing ballet stretching exercises, and the voice in the darkness hissed out it's dark, determined words.

"I will be whole. I will be new."

The eyes watched a female student playing the tuba, a male student trying to preform a magic trick, and a second male rubbing at his temples as he adjusted the dummy on his lap. A typical highschool talent show...

On stage, Cordelia was singing "The Greatest Love of All" in an off key voice.

"Learning to love yourself is the greatest love of all. I decided long ago, never to walk in anyone's shadow, If I fail, if I succeed, at least...

Giles was sitting in the auditorium seats, the only witness to the miracle that was Cordelia's amazing ability to destroy eardrums at a single note. He did not, for obvious reasons, look pleased to be there, and quickly interrupted the girl.

"Thank you, Cordelia. Tha-that's going to be lovely."

Cordelia pouted, "But I didn't do the part with the sparklers!"

Giles scrambled for an excuse. "Um, w-we'll, um... save that for the dress rehearsal. Uh, Lisa! Please!"

Cordelia let out a frustrated sigh, put the microphone away, and left. Lisa, the girl with the tuba, walked up on stage. As she began the blaring solo, Giles rubbed at his eyes.

"If it isn't the great producer!"

Giles looked up, and smiled when he saw Buffy standing beside him. Xander and Willow stood just behind her, and all three settled into seats around him.

"Had to see this to believe it." Xander quipped.

Trying his hardest to sound dour, Giles muttered, "Oh. You three."

Buffy smiled, "The school talent show. How ever did you finagle such a primo assignment?"

"Our new Führer, Mr. Snyder."

Willow couldn't help but grin, "I think they call 'em 'principals' now."

"Mm. He thought it would behoove me to have more contact with the students. I did try to explain that my vocational choice of librarian was a deliberate attempt to..." He drew a deep breath, "minimize said contact, but, uh, he would have none of it."

Buffy's eyes gleamed suddenly with mischief, and Giles found himself staring at the expression, one that lit up her whole face. "Unto every generation is born one who must run the annual talentless show." She said, "You cannot escape your destiny."

Giles scowled in a desperate attempt not to laugh. "If you had any shred of decency, you would have participated, or at least, um, helped."

"Nah! I think I'll take on your traditional role... and watch!"

"And mock!"

"And laugh!"

Willow, Xander and Buffy started to laugh. Then Buffy took mercy on him and said, "Okay. I think maybe we better leave our Mr. Giles to this business he calls show."

The three of them stood up and started back up the aisle. They didn't get far, however, before they bumped into principal Snyder.

"Principal Snyder!"

The Principal sneered at them. "So. We think school events are stupid, and we think authority figures are to be made fun of."

"No! No, we don't." She hesitated, and her eyes widened. "W-unless you do."

Snyder ignored her. "And we think our afternoon classes are optional. All three of you left campus yesterday."

Buffy: Yeah, but we were fighting a demon..."

Giles eyes shot up to Buffy.

Snyder frowned. "Fighting?"

"Not fighting." Buffy corrected.

Xander came to her rescue. "No, we, uh, left to _avoid _fighting."

Snyder sniffed distainfully. "Real anti-social types. You need to integrate into this school, people." He crossed his arms. "I think I just found three eager new participants for the talent show."

Giles started to laugh quietly to himself.

"What?"

"No!"

"Please?"

Snyder still wasn't listening to them, and went on as if they hadn't spoken. "I've been watching you three. Always getting into one scrape or another."

"Well, we're really, really sorry, but about the talent show, pleeease, you can't make us..."

Snyder interrupted her. "My predecessor, Mr. Flutie, may have gone in for all that touchy-feely relating nonsense, but he was eaten. You're in _my_ world now. And Sunnydale has touched and felt for the last time." He started to walk past them.

"Can I just mention, that detention is a time-honored form of punishment?" Xander suggested, Buffy nodding emphatically behind him.

"I know the three of you will come up with a wonderful act for the school to watch. And mock. And laugh." Synder hesitated, then added, "At."

He left.

Xander slumped into a seat, "No!"

Buffy sank next to Giles with a moan, looking at him with large beseeching green eyes.

The best he could do for her was to try and hide the fact that he was laughing.

Since the tuba solo was over, Giles called up to Lisa. "Thank you!"

Morgan, the boy with the dummy, goes up on stafe.

Buffy sees the dummy and squeals, "Ewww, dummy!"

At the same time Xabder sees a mine, "Dyow! Mime!"

Willow sat behind I think dummies are cute. You don't?"

Buffy groaned. "Uuuhhh. They give me the wig. Ever since I was little."

Willow's eyes widened. "What happened."

"I saw a dummy. It gave me the wig." She shrugged, "There really wasn't a story there."

Morgan spoke on stage, taking turns talking as himself and the dummy. "Hi. I'm Morgan."

"And I'm Sid!"

Morgan was so horrible as a ventriloquist that Giles could not hide his wince. Buffy could only stare in disbelief.

"Hey Morgan, would you like to tell some jokes?"

"Would I!"

"As a matter of fact, it is! It's also a wood nose, and a wood mouth!"

Willow looked confused. As Morgan laughs nervously on stage, Buffy looks up at Giles, who removes his glasses with a sigh.

"I didn't sleep at all last night."

"Alright time out, let's stop this before someone gets hurt."

Buffy looked up towards the stage in shock as the dummy starts speaking in a new voice. Suddenly, Morgan's lips no longer appear to be moving.

"Kid, you are the worst." The dummy continued, "Even I can see your lips move."

Buffy started to giggle, and Giles looks up again with hope in his eyes, slipping his glasses back over the bridge of his nose.

Morgan frowned. "C'mon, Sid. You're spoiling my act. I worked on these jokes for weeks."

"You call those jokes? My jockey shorts are made out of better material."

Other participants began to gather at the edge of the stage, laughing at the performance.

"And they're edible!"

Giles smiled, satisfied. "There, you see? I'm sure you three can come up with something... equally exciting."

******

A few hours later, Buffy, Willow and Xander were desperately trying to come up with something to do. They had already come to the conclusion that Willow's stage fright would not allow her to play piano on stage, and that Snyder probably wouldn't appreciate Buffy slaying vampires in front of the students and parents of Sunnydale high.

At that moment, principal Snyder and Giles came in through the doors at the back of the auditorium.

"Kids today need discipline." Snyder was saying. "That's an unpopular word these days, 'discipline'. I know Principal Flutie would have said, 'Kids need understanding. Kids are human beings.' That's the kind of woolly-headed, liberal thinking that leads to being eaten."

"I, I think perhaps it was a little more complex than, um..."

"This place has quite a reputation." Snyder continued, as usual pretending he was the only one in the conversation. "Suicide, missing persons, spontaneous cheerleader combustion... You can't put up with that. You've gotta keep an eye on the bad element... Like those three."

They have reached the stage, and for a minute they watch Buffy, Willow and Xander attempting to practice a dramatic scene.

"Kids. I don't like them." He sneered. "From now on you're gonna see a very different Sunnydale High. Tight ship, clean, orderly, and quiet."

Suddenly, as if to mock Snyder's words, a loud scream came from down the hall.

*******

Later, paramedics were packing up the dead body of Emily from the girl's locker room.

Giles came out of the locker room and ducked under the yellow police tape, walking over to Xander, Buffy and Willow.

"It was Emily."

Willow gasped. "Emily. Dancer Emily?"

Xander's face went pale. "Oh, man! I hate this school."

"Uh, it must have happened just after, uh, dress rehearsals. There was a cross-country meet at Melville. She, she, she never showed up for it."

"Vampire?"

"Um, I think not."

Buffy frowned. "Giles, share! What happened?"

He let out a deep breath, and said, "Her heart was removed."

"Yikes!"

The slayer shuddered, "Does that mean anything to you? Besides ooooooo?"

"Uh... There are various demons which, which feed off human hearts, but..." They looked over simultaneously to see someone putting a knife into an evidence bag.

"But demons have claws." Buffy said morosely. "And teeth."

"They got no use for a big old knife." Xander added.

"Which more than likely makes our murderer..."

"Human."

"Did I mention that I _hate_ this school?"

"So Emily was killed by a regular human person." Willow murmured.

"The evidence certainly points that way." Giles agreed.

But Buffy was shaking her head. "No, wait. I-I'm not buying, you guys. Remember the Hellmouth? Mystical activity is totally rife here. This to me says demon."

"I'd like to think you're right. A demon is a creature of evil, pure and very simple. A person driven to kill is, is, um, it's more complex."

He watched Buffy's face as he said this. He knew no matter what he said, he would be unable to convince the girl that a human was responsible. Evil, Buffy understood. She had been surrounded by it since she was 15 years old, after all. She was unable to understand the human side of it though. There was no _evil _in humans, but some people were sick in a way that Buffy would be unable to comprehend.

Willow nodded. "The creep factor is also heightened. It could be anyone. It could be me!" They stared at her. "It's not, though."

"Uh, demon or no, we have some investigating to do. I suggest we start with your... your talent show compatriots. One of them may have been the last to see her alive."

So they split up to talk to various members of the talent show. First, Buffy spoke to Lisa.

"I didn't know her too well." Lisa said, "There's that whole dancer/band rivalry, y'know?"

"I've heard about that."

"But I did speak to her a little the day that... yesterday."

"How did she seem?"

Outside, Giles was talking to Marc, the boy with the magic tricks.

"She was happy. I guess. She was psyched to be doing the show. She was a really good dancer. Here, pick a card."

"Uh, um..." Reluctantly he reached for one.

"No, wai-wai-wai-wait. Not that one. Pick this one."

Giles took the card. "Do you remember the last time you saw her?"

"She was talkin' to someone."

"Who?"

Willow was talking to another kid.

"That smart guy. The one with the dummy. What's his name?"

"Morgan?"

"Yeah, that's it. He was actin' kinda strange."

"Strange how."

At cheerleader practice, Xander was stuck with talking to Cordelia.

"It's just such a tragedy for me. Emma was, like, my best friend."

"_Emily_."

"Well, Morgan's just strange." Lisa was telling Buffy. "He's always rubbing his head a lot and moaning. Especially the other day."

"He seemed kinda paranoid..." Marc explained to Giles, "Lookin' around at everyone..."

"And I think I saw him arguing..." Elliot confieded in Willow, "with his dummy."

"All I can think is, it coulda been me!" Cordelia cried.

"We can dream."

******

Later, Willow, Buffy and Xander entered the library.

"Okay, next time we split up someone else is on Cordy detail." Xander muttered, "Five more minutes with her and we woulda had another organ donor."

"I think I had a bit more luck." Willow added, "Everyone I talked to seemed to point their fingers at the same person."

As they entered Giles' office, Buffy asked, "Morgan?"

"Morgan." Willow agreed.

"We have a winner!"

Giles sighed. "I fear I was led to the same conclusion."

"Well, what do we do? We don't slay him, right? We wanna bring him to justice."

Willow began to get excited. "We could set up a complex sting operation where we get him to confess!"

"Uh, I should wear a wire!" Xander said, thrilled with the idea as well.

"Whoa, hey, you guys, all we know is that Morgan is a grade A large weirdo. That doesn't lead directly to murderer." Buffy said.

"Guy talks to his puppet!"

"And for his puppet."

Buffy nodded, "Well, yeah, but what about the whole 'it's a demon' theory?"

Giles had not had much time to look. But he knew he had to find out something, _anything_. He had to make it a demon. It had to be a demon. He did not want Buffy to have to face the reality that was a human's desire to kill another human.

"I'm looking into that," He said carefully, "but, uh, my investigation is somewhat... hampered by our life in the theater."

Buffy frowned. "Uh, priority check, Giles? Talent show, murder."

Xander's face lit up. "Yeah, we can't do the talent show, it's unthinkable. I'm not able to think it!"

Giles sighed. "Principal Snyder is watching us all very closely. Now, if he chooses, he can make all our lives extremely difficult. A Slayer cannot afford that! We will find this murderer, but in the meantime... the show must go on."

"This is so unfair."

"Buffy, you, uh, watch Morgan. Check his locker, see if there's anything there."

"Like a heart?" Willow suggested.

"Or something."

"Alright."

"I'll pull up his locker number." Willow skipped off to the computer, and Xander looked around, his face hopeful.

"Can I still wear a wire?"

******

The next day, Buffy had all but forgotten that he had found nothing in Morgan's locker. She was much to distracted by the fact that she had been attacked by a dummy the night before. As she hurried into the auditorium, she stopped near the doors to watch the scene unfolding in front of her.

Marc was on stage, helping his 'lovely assistant' into a large box.

"And my lovely assistant steps into the box... " She did so, and he closed the door and spin the box. "And... behold!"

He threw open the door to reveal his assistant. Marc scowled. "You were supposed to leave!"

Laughter caught Buffy's attention, and she spotted Willow and Xander, watching the act and laughing in the sears.

Before she could move towards them, she saw Giles come out from backstage with Cordelia close behind. This was one of the only times she had been able to watch him, without being obvious, so she took the time now. It didn't seem to matter that Giles was much older then her, she still couldn't help but find him beautiful. He moved with an easy grace that drew her, and his hazel eyes were so calm and intelligent in that face of his... Buffy blinked when Cordelia and Giles began to speak, jarring her from her thoughts. What had she been _thinking? _

"I don't understand why I... why I have to follow Brett and his stupid band." Cordelia was saying.

Giles tried to explain patiently, though it was clear this was not the first time he had done so. "Because we have to clear their equipment before the finale. I told you."

"But the mood! It'll be all wrong!" She stood in front of him, blocking his path. "My song is about dignity and human feelings and person... hygine or something. Anyway, it's sappy, and no one is gonna being feeling sappy after all that rock and roll."

Giles hesitated, then gave Cordelia the strangest look. Cordelia blinked. "Uhh, what."

"Oh! I'm sorry." There was something in Giles' tone that had Buffy's head tilting to the side, her eyes suddenly amused. "Um, your hair, uh..."

"There's something wrong with my hair?" Cordelia sounded horrified.

Giles didn't answer, just stared.

"Ohmigod!"

She ran off, and Giles and Buffy grinned simultaneously.

"Xander was right. It worked like a charm." Giles muttered.

Giles looked up and saw Buffy coming down the aisle. The instant his eyes landed on her, his face lit up. Then he noticed a strange expression on her face.

"Hello. You look a bit worse for, uh... "

Buffy walked past him to sit near Willow and Xander, and Giles followed her.

"What exactly are you the worse for?"

Instead of answering, she asked, "Where's Morgan?"

"Uh, I, I... haven't seen him."

Xander frowned, concerned. "Did he do something to you?"

"No, it was his... Sid, the dummy." There was a moment of silence, and Buffy sighed. "Okay, everyone look at me like I'm in a bunny suit, 'cause that's how stupid I feel saying this... I think Sid was in my room last night."

"With Morgan?" Willow asked.

"No. He was alone. And alive."

"Did you see him?"

"Well, I saw _something_. I-it ran across my floor, under my bed and then it attacked me."

"Attacked you?" Giles moved forward slightly, "How?"

"It was like it pounced on my face."

Xander was beginning to smile. "Like a cat."

"Yeah, exactly! But when I turned the lights on it was already gone. I-I think it went out my window."

"Like a cat."

"Yeah!" Then she noticed he was laughing at her and scowled, "No! It was Sid, the dummy."

"Or possibly the nightmare of somebody who had... dummies on her mind." Giles suggested.

"You did say they creep you out." Willow added.

Buffy's scowl grew more pronounced. "Excuse me? Can I have a _little _support here, please? I'm not just some crazy person, I'm the Slayer."

"The Dummy Slayer?" Xander asked. When he got a look from Buffy, he conceded, "There's nothing funny about that."

"Well, on the side of the 'Morgan's just crazy' theory there is, well, Morgan."

Morgan walked past them, carrying Sid and then opened Sid's case. For a moment, he sat down with Sid on his lap.

"I'd like to see Morgan without his better half for a few minutes." Buffy mused. "Bet he could tell me something."

Giles help up a book "Oh, uh, i-if it's any consolation, I... I may have found a possible demon culprit. The-there's a reference in here to a brotherhood of seven demons who take, uh, the form of young humans. Every seven years these demons need human organs, a-a-a brain and a heart, to maintain their humanity. Otherwise they, they, they revert back to their original form, which is, uh, uh, slightly less appealing."

He handed Xander the book, showing him an image of one of the demons.

"So Morgan could still be the guy, only demon Morgan instead of crazy Morgan." Willow summarized.

"It's said that these demons are, are, are preternaturally strong, and, and, and... Morgan is, is... Well, he seems to be getting weaker every day."

As if on cue, Morgan stopped messing with Sid's shoes long enough to put his hand to his head, like he were in great pain.

******

Xander is sitting in the library playing with Sid. Buffy, Willow and Giles come in, Giles and Willow carrying costumes. Buffy spots Sid.

She frowns. "Where did you get that?"

"Oh, I, uh, took it out of Mrs. Jackson's cupboard. I thought you said you wanted to be able to speak to Morgan alone, and uh... well, Morgan's alone, and, uh... Sid's with me."

Buffy stared at Sid uneasily.

Xander attempted to speak through Sid. "Hi, Buffy! Hi, Willow! Would you like to hear some off-color jokes?"

"I really don't think you should be doing that." Buffy muttered.

"What? C'mon..." He switched his voice to Sid's. "I'm not real!"

Buffy shuddered. "Xander quit it!"

Giles frowned at Xander, and then smiled gently when Buffy inched away, further from Xander and closer to him.

She looked back when she heard Xander pounding Sid's head into the table. "He's... not... real! I think our demonstration proves that, uh, Sid is wood. Now, why don't you go and find Morgan and prove he's... whatever he is?"

"I imagine he's looking for his puppet." Giles pointed out.

"I'll go find Morgan." Buffy moved away from Giles, and turned to give Xander a look. "You watch the dummy."

Xander spoke as Sid again. "Bye-bye, now. I'm completely inanimate."

Buffy gave Xander another look and left.

"Redrum! Redruuum!" 'Sid' cried.

"What do we do with him?" Willow asked.

"Eh, I'll keep him company." Xander said with a grin.

"Willow, we have some hunting of our own to do." Giles reminded her.

Willow sighed. "Once again I'm banished to the demon section of the card catalogue."

Xander sat Sid down at the table.

"Guess it's just you and me, huh?" He adjusted Sid in the seat. "There, that looks more comfortable."

Leaving him there, he went and sat down at the opposite end of the table to work, while Giles and Willow delved into the books at the back of the library.

A few minutes later, Xander looked over at Sid in his chair, and then turned back to his homework. When he got up to get a reference book, however, and looked away for a moment, Sid was gone. He jumps and yelps, climbing onto the table.

"Whoa!"

Giles and Willow hurried out from the back.

"What is it?"

"He's gone! Sid's gone!"

"What? Oh…"

Suddenly, Giles felt a wave of dizziness hit him.

"Sid has found Buffy!" He cried.

"What?" Xander and Willow looked at him, but he could no longer see them.

As his vision went black, his thoughts whirled. They should have listened to Buffy all along. Because of their carelessness, Buffy was in danger. Then he forced himself to calm down as the image began to appear. All the other visions had shown him scenes of Buffy in danger, but she had always handled the situation. It was as if the visions only allowed him to see her when her adrenaline went up, not when her life was actually at risk.

Buffy was backstage, looking around. Some creaking noises came from above her, so she backtracked and called out Morgan's name. She continued to walk, pushing through costumes, walking towards the noise. Suddenly, she stumbled over Morgan's headless body.

"Morgan!" Her voice is nothing but a shocked whisper, and she begins to back away. "Demon's got himself a brain."

She backed up through a curtain, and her eyes shoot up when she hears snapping above her. A large wrought iron chandelier is falling towards her.

"Buffy!" Giles shouted; his eyes fixed on Buffy's unconscious form beneath the chandelier. Then she began to wake.

The sound of quick little footsteps echoes around the room. Looking up, Buffy sees Sid running across the catwalk. Unsuccessfully, she tries to lift the chandelier off of her.

"Who's ever out there, I'm gonna hurt you! Badly!" She glanced down at the chandelier. "If you'll just gimme a minute..."

Again she tried to get out, to no avail. Then Sid appeared before her, knife held high. She turned her face just in time to avoid getting stabbed. Sid tried again, and missed, and Buffy's arm shot out to knock him away. While he was recovering, she pulled herself out.

As Buffy slid out from under the chandelier, Sid tried to attack her from behind, but she knocked him away again and he lost his knife. Finally completely free, Buffy stood up and grabbed Sid, pinning him to the wall.

"You win." Sid hissed. "Now you can take your heart and your brain and move on.

"I'm sure they would have made great trophies for your case." Buffy retorted.

"That woulda been justice."

"Yeah, except for one thing: you lost, and now you'll never be human."

"Yeah, well, neither will you."

They frown, bewildered, and say, "What?"

******

"Giles!"

"Giles!"

Giles reluctantly opened his eyes as the vision faded, to see Willow and Xander standing in front of him, looking deeply concerned.

"Giles, are you okay?"

"Yes." He replied automatically. How could he explain this? "Migraine?"

They frowned doubtfully. "Why did you say Sid found Buffy? And then you yelled No..?"

"Um…" He straightened from the wall and took off his glasses, rubbing at the glass, "Naturally, I assumed he would go after Buffy. If he did last night."

They were clearly not satisfied with this answer, but before either could say anything, Buffy burst in the door carrying Sid.

*****

Later, they all sat around the table, Willow and Xander staring at Sid in obvious amazement. Giles and Buffy only watched with quietly and listened to his explanation.

"This is what I do. I hunt demons. Yeah, you wouldn't know it to look at me. Let's just say there was me, there was a really mean demon, there was a curse, and the next thing I know I'm not me anymore. I'm sitting on some guy's knee, with his hand up my shirt."

"And ever since then you've been a living dummy?" Willow asked.

"The kid here was right all along. I shoulda picked you to team up with. But I didn't because... "

Because you thought_ I_ was the demon." Buffy supplied.

"Who can blame me for thinking? Look at you! You're strong, athletic, limber... Nubile…" He began to drool a little bit, and Giles scowled darkly at him from across the table. Sid shook his head. "I'm back! In any case, now that this demon's got the heart and brain, he gets to keep the human form he's in for another seven years."

Because the tea kettle was whistling, Giles stood. "I must say, it's a welcome change to have someone else explain all these things."

"There were seven of these guys. I've killed six. If I can get the last one, the curse will be lifted and I'll be free. I'm sure it's someone in that stupid talent show."

Buffy nodded. "Yeah, but now that demon has what he wants. He'll be moving on."

"So, once we know who's missing from the show..."

"We'll know who our demon is!"

Giles started, remembering suddenly, "The show!"

"What?"

"It's gonna start! I'm supposed to be there!"

Buffy turned to Willow.

"Okay, um, start pulling everyone's addresses in the talent show. I-if they're not there, maybe we can catch them at home."

Sid spoke to Giles. "And you, get 'em all on stage, form the power circle. Then we can see who's a no-show."

"Um, uh, the what?"

"The power circle. You get everyone together, you get 'em, you know, revved up."

Giles nodded, still confused. "Right." He left.

Sid looked disgusted. "How'd _he_ ever get that gig?"

******

Giles was backstage, trying to get everything into order before the "talentless" show.

"Fifteen minutes to curtain, everyone! Uh, fifteen minutes!"

Cordelia hurried over to him. "I, I can't go out there. All those people staring at me and judging me like I'm some kind of... Buffy! What if I mess up?"

Giles rolled his eyes. "Cordelia, there, uh, there-there's, uh, uh, an adage, uh, that, uh, if you're feeling nervous then, uh, you should imagine the entire audience are in their underwear."

"Eww! Even Mrs. Franklin? Uhhh!"

Giles winced. "Perhaps not."

"Yeah."

"Um, alright, um, we'll assemble on the stage in five minutes for the, um, uh, power thing." Giles called out to everyone.

Above, Sid and Buffy sat on the catwalk and watched, trying to see who was missing from the circle.

Sid glanced up at Buffy. "So, what's your deal, kid? I don't figure you for a demon hunter."

"I'm a Vampire Slayer." Buffy explained.

Sid's eyes widened. "You?! You're the Slayer?" When Buffy nodded, he added, "Damn! I knew a Slayer in the 30's. Korean chick. Very hot. We're talking _muscle_ tone. Man, we had some times." Buffy gave him a look. "Hey, that was pre- dummy, alright? Now, I was a guy!"

"So, you kill the demon and the curse is lifted, right?"

"That's the drill."

Buffy watched him. "You don't actually turn into a prince, do you? I-I mean, your body..."

"Is dust and bones. When I say free..."

"You mean dead."

"Don't get sniffly on me, sis. I've lived a lot longer than most demon hunters. Or Slayers, for that matter."

Buffy looked away, and Sid put a hand on her knee.

"Of course, if you want to snuggle up and comfort me... "

Buffy looked disgusted and lifted his wooden hand off her knee. "So, that horny dummy thing really _isn't_ an act, is it?"

"Nope!"

"Yuk!"

Sid and Buffy looked towards the stage once more, just as Giles began to speak.

"I-is everybody here?"

"Okay, here comes our line-up." Sid muttered.

"Quickly, everyone! Uh... um, power circle."

Below, the students arranged themselves in a circle and held hands. Sid and Buffy scanned the group for any missing members, and Giles did as well, from his position on the stage.

"Well, that's that, then. Um, everybody, uh, get ready!"

Some of the students looked confused, but broke the circle nevertheless and wandered away to get ready.

Buffy slipped under the railing, and dropped easily to the stage below, as Sid watched. Giles blinked when she landed lightly beside him.

"No one's missing."

"So the demon isn't in the show." Buffy sighed.

"It seems not. Uh, tell the others. Look, it's nearly curtain. I must get the show rolling."

"Right."

"Right."

Buffy looked up. Sid was gone.

"Sid?"

She frowned, and then began to look around for him. She stopped by a work bench and glanced around and then felt something dripping onto her arm.

Buffy reached up the shelf above her and yelped in shock when a brain rolled down from the shelf into her hands.

*****

In the library, Buffy and Xander hovered around the computer where Willow was working.

"I'm never gonna stop washing my hands." Buffy informed them, staring at her hands.

"So, the dummy tells us that he's a demon hunter. And we're, like, fine, la la la la. He takes off, and now there's a brain. Does anybody else feel like they've been Keyser Soze'd?" Xander asked.

"Sid's on the level, I'm sure of it." Buffy argued. "But why would the demon have rejected the brain? I-I mean, I thought Morgan was the smartest kid in school."

Willow looked up from the computer where she was going over Morgan's files. "He was, look at his grades: all A's. He was even taking college classes. Wait a second."

"What?"

"All these sick days."

Xander looked. "He was off for, like, half the year!"

"Check the school nurse's file."

"Look at this! 'In case of emergency, contact Dr. Dale Leggett, California Institute of Neurosurgery, Cancer Ward.'"

Xander frowned. "Brain cancer?"

Willow's eyes were wide. "That's why he had all the headaches."

"This means that whatever's out there still needs a healthy, intelligent brain." Buffy murmured.

Xander grinned, "In other words, I'm safe!"

"And it's gonna be looking for the smartest person around." Both Buffy and Xander look at Willow.

"What? What could a demon possibly want from me?"

"What's the square root of 841?" Xander asked pointedly.

Willow didn't even hesitate. "29... Oh, yeah."

"Don't worry, Willow. As long as you're with us there's absolutely no way that demon is gonna get what he wants."

******

Backstage in the auditorium, Giles was helping Marc set up another of his "magic show" pieces. He held up a pair of weights and was trying to explain a concept.

"Yes, if you, you calibrated the units of weight then you could calculate the, uh, specific maximum velocity achieved before the point of impact."

Marc smiled harmlessly. "Gee, Mr. Giles, you're really... smart! Could you do me a favor?"

Marc showed Giles how the guillotine worked on a melon.

Giles picked up the other half of it. "Oh my!"

"Pretty cool, huh?"

Giles frowned. "Are you sure there's no one else who could help you out?"

"My assistant got sick. You won't have to say anything. I'll, I'll show you. Lie down."

"Uh, uh, how, how exactly does it work?"

Marc pulled up the blade. "A good magician never tells his secrets. C'mon. We haven't got much time."

*****

Buffy, in the library, was pacing nervously. "This is ridiculous. We can't just sit here and wait for him to come to us. We have to figure out who we're dealing with."

"I still vote dummy." Xander said.

"No. Okay, so we ruled out all the people in the talent show..."

"That's because they were all there. But that's before we found the brain."

"Right. So it probably _is_ one of them. And, and Giles doesn't know! He's with them all right now!"

Xander scoffs. "Giles can handle himself. I mean, he is really..."

Suddenly he pauses, jaw dropping.

"Smart." Buffy whispered, horrified.

Buffy slammed out through the library doors. "Giles!"

She was barely aware of Willow and Xander racing after her towards the auditorium. She was only aware of the terror in her heart and the image of Giles' warm smile and beautiful hazel eyes in her mind, urging her to hurry.

******

Meanwhile, backstage, Giles was strapped down to the guillotine bench.

"Sh-sh-shouldn't it be aimed at my neck?"

"No. No, this way your scalp gets sliced off and your brains just... come pouring out." Marc smiled and slid the head restraint onto Giles' forehead.

"What exactly is the trick?" Giles asked.

"Trick?"

Marc pulled the restraint tighter and Giles' eyes widened. "Marc?"

Ignoring him, Marc grabs a small axe and begins to hack at the rope holding the blade up.

"M-Marc?"

Another swing had the rope barely together. The blade slipped slightly, and just as Marc began the final swing, Buffy appeared out of nowhere and tackled Marc to the floor.

A third swing, and the rope is almost cut through. The blade slips a bit. Giles looks up at it in terror. Another swing and the rope hangs by a thread. Marc raises the hatchet for the final cut. Buffy lunges at him and tackles him to the floor. As he tries to get up, she kicked his legs out from under him, stood, and went into a fighting stance.

Again, Marc tried to stand, and she kicked his face, knocking him back to the floor. Marc gave a vicious growl, and Buffy noticed his demon skin coming through.

"Ewww!" Buffy muttered.

Marc took advantage of her distraction and punched her hard several times, causing her to spin and crash to the floor. Behind her, the rope snapped, and Giles cried out. At the last possible second, Xander grabbed the rope, stopping the blade, and began to pull it up and away.

Willow began to release him. "Where are the keys?"

"Marc's got it!" Giles cried.

"Willow!" Xander kicked the axe to her, and she scooped it up and began to hack at teh lock.

"Hurry!" Giles begged.

Buffy got up again and grabbed Marc, pulling him down and onto his back, then, when he stood, she began to punch and kick at him. He staggered backwards and into the disappearing-act box. The door closed on him.

"How do you lock this thing?" Buffy asked.

It turned out to be a moot point, because Marc punched through the box and reached for her. When she backed out of the way, he began to claw his way through, now in full demon form.

Marc grabbed Buffy by the neck and lifted her into the air.

Hearing Buffy's struggled, Giles shouted, "What's happening?"

The demon slammed Buffy harshly into the wall a few times.

Finally, Willow pulled the lock off, and Giles is freed. Out of nowhere, Sid leapt onto the demon's back and began to stab it with the knife.

As Giles finally rolls off the bench, Buffy and Sid force the demon onto the guillotine where he was only seconds before.

"Let go!" Buffy yelled to Xander.

Xander let go of the blade, chopping off the demons head. Willow winced.

"Uh... I must say, all of you... Your t-timing is impeccable." Giles whispered.

Buffy looked up, and their eyes met. Giles read the left over terror in her expression and frowned, but before he could say anything, Sid spoke.

"And now for the big finish."

He stands on the demon's chest and raises the knife.

Buffy looked away from Giles. "What are you doing?"

"It's not enough. He'll come back. You have to get the heart. Then all of this'll be over."

Buffy held out her hand. "Let me."

"I got it. Thanks."

Sid stabbed the demon and then he slumped lifeless over the demon's dead body.

Buffy looked sadly at Sid, and then lifted him into her arms. She was about to walk off stage when the curtain drew back, revealing the entire audience looking upon the scene, including Snyder and Buffy's mother.

"I don't get it." Snyder said, "What is it? Avant-garde?"

*****

Later, Giles and Buffy walked off of school property together. Giles was walking to his car, and Buffy was going to meet her mother at their own car.

"Buffy?" Giles asked quietly.

"Hm?"

He looked over at her, and saw that beautiful face illuminated by the moonlight. Feeling his gaze, Buffy looked over too, neither noticing that they had stopped walking.

"Did you think I was going to die?" he asked.

Buffy's eyes flashed with pain. "Yes."

He felt like a jerk for pressing the matter, but he asked, "Would you have been sad, Buffy?"

"Yes." She reached out and linked her hand with his, just for a second. "But I wouldn't have let him hurt you."

Then she released his hand and walked away, meeting her mother and vanishing into the car.

Long after Joyce and Buffy had disappeared, Giles stood alone in the parking lot, looking down at his hand, and wondering.

*****

Couldn't resist adding that part ^ ^


	6. Chapter 6

Hey people! Sorry this was late, my computer was malfunctioning yesterday (I affectionately refer to my computer as Yorik the Second. I'm sure you can all guess what happened to the first computer I named Yorik )

Anyway! The moment you've all been waiting for! Or at least, the moment mmooch has been waiting for! "Nightmares" And some angsty goodness!!!!

******

_In every generation there is a Chosen One. She alone will stand against the vampires, the demons and the forces of darkness. She is the Slayer._

Willow Rosenburg and Buffy Summers were chatting as they walked down the halls of Sunnydale high. Buffy had just told Willow that her father was coming down from LA that weekend.

"So, do you see your dad a lot?"

"Not a whole lot." Buffy admitted. "He's still in L.A. He, like, comes down for weekends sometimes."

"When did they get divorced?"

"Well, it wasn't finalized till last year, but they were separated before that."

And the problems had all started when Merrick had told her she was the Slayer, and her life had gotten out of control. She didn't blame Merrick for that, but she did blame herself. She knew there had to have been a way that she could have handled the Slaying - and everything else - better. In a way that wouldn't have caused her father to run for the hills. Buffy also recognized she had some reservations about returning to the Slayer game here in Sunnydale. What else could this gig of hers destroy?

"Musta been harsh." Willow sympathized.

They had reached Buffy's locker, and as she worked the combination, Buffy said, "Yeah, that's the word you're looking for. I-I mean, they were really good about it around me, anyway, but still..."

"My parents don't even bicker." Willow mused, "Sometimes they glare. Do you know why your folks split up?"

Bufyf opened her locker. "I didn't ask. They just stopped getting along. I'm sure I was a really big help, though, with all the slaying and everything. I was in so much trouble. I was a big mess."

_Still am_. She let herself admit that, at her to herself.

"Well, I'm sure that didn't have anything to do with him leaving."

How she wished that could be true. Sighing, Buffy closed her locker. "No."

"And he still comes down on weekends."

"Sometimes."

As they entered the classroom, they saw Cordelia checking her makeup in her mirror. Their classmate, Wendell, walked over to look at his paper in the sunlight streaming in the window.

"Hello? Doofus!" Wendell looked down at Cordelia, "You're in my light."

Xander walked over to them. "Wendell, what is wrong with you? Don't you know that she is the center of the universe, and the rest of us merely revolve around her?"

Taking no offence (after all, in her world, it was true) Cordelia suggested, "Why don't you revolve yourselves out of my light?"

The bell rang, and Wendell and Xander took their seats. Willow and Buffy walked over to them.

"Uh, Wendell was in Cordelia's light." Xander explained.

"I'm so ashamed." Wendell said mournfully, though his eyes were laughing, and he did not look at all sorry.

"Why is she so Evita-like?" Willow complained.

"I think it's the hair." Buffy replied thoughtfully.

Willow grinned. "It weighs heavy on the cerebral cortex."

"Hey, guys, was there any homework?"

Willow looked down at Xander. "We're doing active listening today."

Xander brightened."Cool!" Then he frowned. "What's active listening?"

Willow rolled her eyes. "That would be the homework."

As Willow and Buffy sat, Buffy pulled out her textbook and showed it to Xander.

"Chapter five? Active listening? Where you put on your big ears and really focus on the other person?"

Wendell chimed in, "Ms. Tishler demonstrated it yesterday."

"With you!" Willow added.

Buffy had an idea. "She was wearing that tight sweater?"

Xander's brain - or some other equally important organ - clicked. "Oh, the midnight blue angora! See, I was listening."

Willow gave him a look. Then Ms. Tishler spoke from the front of the class.

"Alright, take your seats. In a moment we will choose partners and practice what we read about in chapter five."

Xander cupped his hands around his ears and grinned at her. Even as Willow and Buffy shot each other amused looks, Ms. Tishler enthused, "Good, Xander, that's the spirit!"

She continued, "Before we do, let's review. Isaacson's research led him to conclude that one of our most fundamental needs after food and shelter is to be heard. Wendell, would you read the first two paragraphs on page seventy-eight where Isaacson describes the rapid improvement active listening brought to some special needs clients."

Buffy dropped her pencil and bent to pick it up. As she straightened, she saw a boy standing in the doorway. He was wearing a strange white shirt, and looked far too young to go to Sunnydale high.

She looked away when she heard Wendell's scream. He had opened his text to read, and tarantuals had started pouring out from between the pages. The teacher and students around him screamed and began to scramble away,

The spiders began to crawl over Wendell. "Please! Get 'em off of me! Help! Help! Get 'em off of me! Help me! Oh, please help me! Please!"

"Sorry about that." the boy in the doorway whispered.

"Please help me!"

*****

Giles was lost in the stacks.

He could hardly believe it was really happening. He had nightmares about getting lost in the stacks, of course, but those were just nightmares. Not even midly believable either, because who could get lost in a few bookshelves? But he had already pinched his arm black and blue to try and wake himself up, to no avail. This was no dream.

Suddenly he heard the voices of Buffy, Willow and Xander entering the library.

"You da man, Buff!" Xander was saying.

"Okay, but we're still caring about the spiders here." Willow reminded him."Let's not forget the spiders."

Then Buffy spoke."Well, Giles said he was gonna look it up."

Her voice. He would follow her voice out. If only she would just keep talking. Then she called his name, and he saw the way out.

Just as Willow suggested he might be in the faculty room, he stumbled out of the stacks, looking around him in bewilderment until he eyes landed on Buffy's face. Then he focused, and was able to read the concern in her eyes.

"Hey, Giles! Wakey, wakey!"

He blinked. "I was, uh, in the stacks. I got lost."

Not sensing Giles' confusion, Xander asked, "Did you find any theories on spiders coming out of books?"

Xander moved his hand into a spider shape and reached around Willow's shoulder with his arm, wiggling his fingers.

"Big, hairy, crawly..."

Willow yelped, spun, and hit Xander.

"It's funny if you're me." He told her solomely.

"I couldn't find anything, uh... particularly illuminating." Giles admitted, still slightly shaken. "Um, I think perhaps you'd best have a chat with Wendell himself."

"Okay." Buffy agreed, "If he can still talk." She gave him a final worried look before leaving, with Xander and Willow right behind her.

******

Less then two hours later, Buffy burst into the library.

"Giles?"

"Yes?" He came out back from the office where he had been going over books on magic and spiders, trying to piece them together in his mind. "Are you okay?"

"_I_ am. But a student was attacked in the basement of the school."

"The basement? What would a student be doing in the basement?"

"Smoking apparently." Buffy shrugged, "Anyway, I think this might be our kind of unusual. It might even have something to do with Wendell's spiders."

"Come on then." He said, grabbing his jacket. "I'll take you to the hospital, we'll see what we can find out."

She smiled up at him brilliantly, momentarily stunning him, and said, "Thanks Giles."

He shook his head to clear his mind once more, and lead her to his car in the parking lot.

On the way to the hospital, Buffy filled him in on everything that had happened between then and now.

"Well, we talked to Wendell. Apparently he had the best collection of spiders the tri-county area, before his parents sent him to camp. While he was gone his brother left their lamp on, and they all died. So ever since then he's been having these horrible nightmares where the spiders come to get him, for revenge or something. They're always the same."

Giles frowned. "Let me guess. In the classroom, teacher asks him to read, the spiders come out of the book?"

Buffy nodded, "Got it in one. Exactly what happened in class."

He glanced over at her. "Something else happened too."

She didn't question his confidence in this. "Yeah. I was in history, and we had this test. I looked at the clock, and it was 11:20. Then I sharpened my pencil and looked at the clock again. It was 12:10."

Giles raised his eyebrows. "It took you almost an hour to sharpen your pencil?"

Buffy scowled. "Of course not. It was like time jumped forward. But no one else seemed to notice. Then I wrote my name on the test, and class was over."

By this time they had reached the hospital.

"That is definitely strange." Giles said as they walked down the hall, looking for the girl's room.

"I think they said room 3016."

"Do you know the girl?" Giles asked her.

"To say hi to. Laura's nice enough."

"Nobody saw who attacked her?"

"Let's hope Laura did."

They entered room 3016. Laura was lying on the bed, covered in cuts and bruises. She looked up and saw them.

"Hey Laura." Buffy said warmly.

"Hi."

"I hope we're not intruding, um..." Giles looked uncertain as to what to say.

That's okay. I don't wanna be left alone." Laura's voice was hoarse, and she looked weak.

"You understand we're anxious to make sure this, this doesn't happen again." Giles told her.

Buffy sat down next to the bed. "Can you tell us what happened?'

"I was in the basement. I went down for a smoke. There was... someone there."

"Someone you knew?"

"I've never... seen anything like it."

Buffy glanced up at Giles. "It?"

"Can you describe it?" Giles asked.

Laura glanced away.

"Hey, that's okay. Don't worry about it." Buffy assured her, standing.

"Yes, you, you, you just rest now." Giles agreed.

"You know, but i-if you remember anything? You can tell us. Even if it may seem weird."

They started to leave.

"Lucky nighteen"

They turned.

"I'm sorry?"

"It's what he said, right before... He said 'lucky nineteen'. That's weird, right?"

Giles nodded. "Yes. Yes, it is."

Buffy smiled at her. "Feel better."

"Take care."

Out in the hall, Giles spotted one of Laura's doctors. "Doctor, is she gonna be alright?"

"You family?"

"Friends." Buffy supplied.

He accepted that and started walking down the hall, letting Buffy and Giles trail after him. "She'll recover. She's got a couple of shattered bones, a little internal bleeding... she got off pretty easy."

Giles and Buffy frowned simultaneously.

"Easy?"

"Have you looked up the word lately?"

"Well, the first one's still in a coma." He stopped in front of another room.

"First what?"

"First victim." He peered into the room. "They found him a week ago. Exact same M.O. as the girl, only he's in worse shape. If he doesn't wake up soon... Somebody's gotta stop this guy."

"Somebody will." Buffy assured him.

*****

Later, Giles was going over a bunch of newspapers in the library when Buffy entered.

"What's the word?"

"Oh, uh, I've got back issues of the, uh, papers, um, to try to do some research."

"Did you find anything?"

"I don't know."

"You don't know if you didn't find anything."

"I'm having a problem"

Instantly Buffy stepped forward. "What is it?"

"I-I can't read!" How could this happen? Buffy needed him to figure all this stuff out, and now he _couldn't read_.

"What do you mean? You can read, like, three languages."

"Five, actually, on a normal day. Th-the words here don't make any s-sense. I-it's gibberish!" He stepped away from the papers in frustrasion.

Buffy opened her mouth to reassure him, then spotted something that stopped her in her tracks. "That's him."

Giles turned back to her."Who?"

"The kid I've been seeing around school." She read from the paper. "'Twelve-year-old Billy Palmer was found beaten and unconscious after his kiddie league game Saturday. Doctors describe his condition as critical.' When was this published?" She glanced at the date. "Last week. It says he's in a coma in intensive care. This is the boy from the hospital!"

"The first victim? Uh... You, you've seen him around the school?"

"Yeah, first when the spiders got Wendell, and, and then when I didn't know a thing on the history test. I thought it was weird seeing this kid around, but I forgot about it."

"Uh, the boy's been in a coma for a week. How can this be possible?"

Buffy raised her eyebrows. "What, am I knowledge girl now? Explanations are your terrain."

"Uh, well, um, there's astral projection, uh, the theory that while one sleeps one has another body, a-an astral body, which can travel through time and space."

"Billy's in a coma. That's like sleep, right?"

"In a manner of speaking, a-a-although one doesn't always awake from a coma."

"Could I be seeing Billy's asteroid body?"

Giles smothered a laugh at her pernounciation, and said, "_Astral_ body, and I-I don't know. As usual, one doesn't have an inordinate amount of information to work with."

"Lucky nineteen..." She murmured...

Then her father, Hank Summers entered the library.

"There you are! I've been looking everywhere. Why aren't you in class?"

Buffy stiffed, and Giles read surprise, happiness and anxiety on her features before she spun to face him.

"Dad, what are you doing here? Y-you're not supposed to pick me up till after school. Is something wrong?"

"Well, I, I need to talk to you."

Buffy's eyes widened. "Something _is _wrong. Is it mom?"

Giles shifted himself until he was standing protectively slightly in front of Buffy. As if he could protect her from whatever her father was about to tell her. He didn't like that look in her eyes, and irrationally hated her father for putting it there.

"No, no, it's not your mother, she's fine." He lowered his voice. "Could I speak with you for a moment? Privately?"

"Um, sure! Yeah." She looked up at Giles. "Uh, oh! I'm sorry. Dad, this is Mr. Giles, the librarian. Uh, this is my dad, Hank Summers."

"My pleasure." He forced the words out, and shook the man's hand.

"Likewise."

Buffy looked up at Giles for a moment, and his eyes clung to hers, wishing he could reassure her.

"I'll be back."

Buffy and Hank left the library. For a moment, Giles tried to read the papers. Then he scowled, spun from the paper, and put his hands up to either side of his head in frustrasion. If only he could control the damn visions! He had to know what was happening, what was so horrible that Hank had come early to speak to Buffy about. He had to know. He could not stay here, with that image of the look in Buffy's eyes fully lodged into his mind.

Then he felt a huge wave of dizziness, and with it a burst of triumph. A vision. He had actually called upon a vision. And just in time too. He knew he had to be able to be there in a second if Buffy needed him.

Buffy and her father had left the school building, and were now walking across the lawn.

"I came early because there's something I've needed to tell you. About your mother and me. Why we split up." Hank was saying.

"Well, you always told me it was because..."

"Uh, I know we always said it was because we'd just grown too far apart."

Buffy's voice wavered slightly. "Yeah, isn't that true?"

"Well, c'mon, honey, let's, let's sit down."

They sat down at a bench.

"You're old enough now to know the truth." Hank added.

"Is there someone else?"

"No. No, it was nothing like that."

Buffy frowned, but a horrible understanding was rising in her eyes. "Then what was it?"

"It was you."

Buffy looked stricken, though clearly she had been expecting him to say it. Giles felt like lunging for Hank's throat, and if he had actually been anywhere near that bench at the time, he probably would have.

"Me?"

"Having you. Raising you. Seeing you everyday. I mean, do you have any idea what that's like?"

Giles had no idea what it was like to have or raise a daughter, but he knew that seeing Buffy every day would be... as close to heaven as it was possible to get on Earth. What was the idiotic man talking about? How could her father talk to her like that?

"What?" Buffy's voice was nothing but a broken whisper.

"Gosh, you don't even see what's right in front of your face, do you?" Hank's voice was incredulous. "Well, big surprise there, all you ever think about is yourself. You get in trouble. You embarrass us with all the crazy stunts you pull, and do I have to go on?"

Giles paled. Suddenly, he understood. He understood why Buffy had refused to be the Slayer when he first met her, had tried to "quit" and forget all about her duty. She had believed that her parents had split up over the "crazy stunts" she had to pull in order to be the Slayer. Add that to her father actually leaving, and her mother having to move to Sunnydale to get Buffy into a new school...

Buffy was on the verge of tears, and Giles felt his heart breaking for her even as he watched the terrible scene unfolding in front of him.

"No. Please don't."

"You're sullen and... rude and... you're not nearly as bright as I thought you were going to be... Hey, Buffy, let's be honest. Could you stand to live in the same house with a daughter like that?"

Giles remembered what he had imagined the Slayer would be like on Buffy's first day at Sunnydale High. She had turned out to be almost the exact opposite, but that didn't make her any less amazing. He wouldn't have wanted to change her for anything in her world.

"Why are you saying all these things?" Buffy asked in a broken voice.

A tear rolled down her cheek, and Giles'. The tear on his cheek was not Buffy's, but his own. Even as she cried while facing her father's cruelty, Giles' cried because he could not stand to see such pain on Buffy's face.

"Because they're true." Hank said ruthlessly. "I think that's the least we owe one another." He sneered at Buffy's tears."You know, I don't think it's very mature, getting blubbery when I'm just trying to be honest. Speaking of which, I don't really get anything out of these weekends with you. So, what do you say we just don't do them anymore?"

She stared at him in shock, but he only patted her leg.

"I sure thought you'd turn out differently."

He left.

Giles came out of the vision shakily, and pressed a hand over his eyes, wiping the tears away. He had to get to Buffy.

Suddenly, the library doors opened, and Willow and Xander came in. Xander was pulling on his gym shirt.

"Red alert! Where's Buffy?" He demanded.

"Uh, she, she just stepped out. Her, her father came by early. He, he needed to talk to her." The bastard. Why had Willow and Xander come in _now_? A few more seconds and he already would have been gone, looking for Buffy. To distract himself, he asked, "W... where are your other clothes?"

"Oh, don't I wish I had the answer to _that_ question."

Giles frowned.

"Xander kinda found himself in front of our class not wearing much of anything." Willow explained.

"Except my underwear."

Willow laughed. "Yeah! It was really..." She caught the expression on Xander's face and tried to hide her amusement. "Bad. It was a bad thing."

"'Bad thing'? I was naked. 'Bad thing' doesn't cover it."

Willow nodded. "Everyone staring? I would hate to have everyone paying attention to me like that.

"With nudity!" Xander cried, "It's a total nightmare."

Suddenly Willow realized something. "Well, yeah Xander! I-it's your nightmare!"

"Except the part with me waking up goin' 'it's all a dream'. It happened."

Willow was getting excited. "Like it happened to Wendell. That thing with the spiders? Wendell had a recurring dream about that."

Giles' eyes widened "I-I dreamt that I got lost in the stacks and I... I couldn't read... Of course!"

"Uh, our dreams are coming true?" Xander asked.

"Dreams? That would be a musical comedy version of this. Nightmares, our, our nightmares are coming true."

He wondered, suddenly, if that would explain the scene with Buffy. Was her father really just so cruel to her, or was it Buffy's nightmare, made reality? He supposed it didn't matter either way. Buffy's pain had been real, and if she was having nightmares about such an event, she must believe everything Hank had said was true.

"So, why is this happening?" Willow asked.

Luckily, he had an answer for her. "Billy."

Xander's eyebrows shot up. "Well, that explanation was shorter than usual." He turned to Willow with mock-excitement. "It's Billy!" Dropping the act, he asked Giles, "Who's Billy?"

"He's a boy in the local hospital. He was beaten. He's in a coma. Somehow I think he's crossed over from the nightmare world he's trapped in."

"And he brought the nightmare world with him. Thanks a bunch, Billy."

"How could he do that?"

Giles shrugged. "Things like that are easy when you live on a Hellmouth."

"Well, um, we have to stop it." Xander pointed out.

"And soon." Giles agreed, "Or else everyone in Sunnydale is gonna be facing their own worst nightmares."

Giles, Willow and Xander walked out of the library to search for Buffy.

"Buffy doesn't know this is happening." Giles said, "And given the sort of thing that she tends to dream about, it's imperative that we find her."

Especially since she believed her father really had just completely abandoned her.

"Probably faster if we split up to look for her." Xander said.

"Good idea."

They both went off their own ways.

"Uh, faster, but... not really safer." Willow protested, to no one in particular.

******

About fifteen minutes later, Giles was walking into a room when he heard a scream and Willow and Xander crashed into him.

"No sign of Buffy?" He asked.

Ignoring his words, they grabbed him and started to pull him along with them as they ran. Looking over his shoulder, Giles realized why they had screamed. They were being chased by a clown wielding a very dangerous looking knife. Instantly, he began to run too.

They reached the end of the hallway before Xander stopped and turned around. Reluctantly, Giles and Willow stumbled to a halt and spun around as well. Without a second's hesitation, Xander walked up to the clown. As it raised his knife to attack him, Xander punched him in the face, knocking him out cold.

"You are a lousy clown!" He cried. "Your balloon animals are pathetic! Everyone can make a giraffe!"

Leaving the clown lying there, Giles, Xander and Willow rushed out of the building in search of Buffy.

"I feel good! I feel liberated!" Xander said, once they were outside.

Looking around at the people running past them, Giles said, "You seem to be the only one. Things are getting worse. In a few hours reality will fold completely into the realm of nightmares."

"Well, what do we do?"

_Find Buffy. He had to find Buffy. _"The only thing I can think is to try and wake Billy."

"Uh, no, we can't leave without Buffy."

"Agreed, but who knows where she might have gone?"

"Excuse me," Willow interrupted, "when did they put a cemetery in across the street?

Xander looked over at the shift in space, where a cemetery now stood across the street. "And when did they make it night over there?" He added.

Knowing this was the most likely place for Buffy to be, they walked through the rift and into the cemetery.

"Whose nightmare is this?" Xander asked, looking around with interest.

Giles had found what he was looking for though. He stopped next to a grave that read 'Buffy Summers 1981 – 1997'. Pain knifed through him, worse then anything he had ever felt before. Everything else that mattered in his life faded away from him, and he could only stare at that grave in hopeless despair.

"It's mine."

His voice did not sound like his. It was broken, so raw with agony that it barely sounded human anymore.

He dropped to his knees beside the grave, not caring if he never left this spot. He could hardly believe that he had dragged Buffy into his nightmare. She was gone now, and it was all his fault. _She was gone_. The words, the concept of Buffy being _dead_, had not sunk in yet. There was no way she could _actually _be dead, because the pain that would come with that would be far too horrible to imagine. To survive. He had not known her that long, in the scheme of things, but he knew that the end of her life might as well be the end of his.

"I've failed... in my duty to protect you. I should have been more c... cautious. Taken more time to train you. But you were so gifted. And the evil was so great. I'm sorry..." He rested his hand on the grave, and in a voice far too quiet for Willow or Xander to hear, he whispered, "_I love you Buffy." _

Suddenly, a hand reached through the dirt and grabbed his. It was Buffy's hand, but it felt strange. Cold. Still, the sensation of her hand in his brought an overwhelming surge of joy and disbelief that left him speechless. He barely even heard Willow scream behind him.

Giles reluctantly pulled back as Buffy crawled out of the grave, brushing off the dirt. His happiness at seeing Buffy was so great, that at first Giles did not recognize the change in her. Then he saw it. Her face was creased and folded in a similar way that the vampire's faces were. Not even _similar_, she was a vampire.

This registered, finally, but he realized, selfishly, that he did not care. Buffy was back. She was alive. Anything they had to do to help her, they would do. They would get her a soul – like Angel – before she ever hurt anybody. Anything they had to do... She was _alive_. Nothing else mattered.

"Buffy?" He whispered, still hardly believing she was really there.

She looked up at him. "I thought I was dead!"

"Buffy, your face!" Willow cried.

Buffy reached up and felt her face and realized instantly what had happened. "Oh God!" She turned away from them. "Don't look at me!"

More than anything, Giles wanted to take her in his arms, to comfort her and tell her he didn't give a damn what happened to her. But he knew she would not want to hear it. Not from him. Fighting down the wave of depression, he managed to say, "You never told me you dreamt of becoming a vampire."

"This isn't a dream." Her voice sounded so final. As if this were the end of everything. He wondered if she imagined her friends would abandon her now that she was among the living dead. Wondered if she thought _he _would abandon her. After all, as far as she knew, her father had left her just because she was the Slayer. How must she think people would react now that she was actually a vampire?

Whatever Buffy might or might now feel for him, he had to convince her that everything would be okay. Perhaps she would not even have to be a vampire forever. "No. No, it's not. But there's a chance that we can make it go away. This all comes from Billy. Now, if, if we can only wake him up, I believe that the nightmares will stop and reality will shift back into place, but we must do it now! I need you to hold together long enough to help us. Can you do that?"

His voice gentled as he spoke the last words, as he begged her to have the strength to fight past the vampire instincts, and her own depression, to fight for her own life.

She met his gaze evenly, and there was trust in her eyes, and hope. "Yeah. I think I can."

"Thank you."

Facing the others, Buffy said, "Well, we better hurry... 'cause I'm getting hungry."

She started to walk away.

They followed her.

"That is a... joke, right?" Xander asked.

Giles, who had seen the mischief in Buffy's eyes before she turned away, knew it _was _a joke, so he did not bother to answer him.

"Are you sure everything will go back once he's awake?" Willow asked.

"Oh, uh, positive." Because Buffy trusted him to make it better, he _had _to be positive.

"Well, how do we wake Billy up?" She asked. "What if we can't?"

"Willow, do shut up."

*****

They reached the hospital, and Buffy, Giles, Willow and Xander ran down the hallway towards Billy's room. The doctor is outside the room, apparently looking in on the boy.

"Doctor! Is the boy Billy still here?" Giles cried.

The Doctor turned away from the window, his eyes wild; his hands deformed and crippled, "My hands!" He wailed, and left.

They ran into Billy's room.

"What now?" Xander asked.

Giles bent over Billy. "Um... Billy! Billy?"

"That won't work."

They all turned to see Billy's astral body standing beside the curtains.

"Billy! Uh, Billy, you have to wake up." Giles pleased.

"No. I told her. I have to hide."

"Why?"

"From him!"

Giles turned at the sound of Buffy's voice. She hadn't entered the room; instead she was standing out in the hall, looking down the hallway.

Giles moved to the window and looked out to see a large deformed man running down the hall. Buffy had told him about this man on the way to the hospital. The Ugly Man. Apparently, Buffy had expected him to show up, and had chosen to stand guard outside the room while they tried to wake Billy.

"Aw, man, what do we do?" Xander asked.

"I think I know." Buffy's voice was calm, certain. She took off her jacket.

Hearing a buzzing outside the window, Willow turned and looked through the blinkds to see giant black wasps flying over the town, and other evidence of people's horrible nightmares. "Whatever it is, it'd better be soon!"

The Ugly Man was making his way toward Buffy.

"Glad you showed up!" Buffy called, unafraid, "You see, I'm having a really bad day."

"Lucky nineteen!" Ugly Man called.

"Scary! I'll tell you something, though. There are a lot scarier things than you." She took a few steps towards him. "And I'm one of them."

The Ugly Man stopped and stared at her. Without warning, Buffy snarled at him and ran, jumping on him and knocked him down, punching him twice in the face.

The Ugly Man clocked a third punch and kicked her off him. Undaunted, she stood and gave him a roundhouse kick to the gut. He doubled over, but slammed her into the window of Billy's room, and against the opposite wall.

He tried to punch her with the arm that was formed into a club, but she ducked, came around and kicked him in the back. He slammed into her again, and both fall into Billy's room, against his bed. When he swung towards her, she broke the club arm over her knee, causing him to scream in pain, then bodychecked him into the wall, where he collapsed unconscious.

After a moment of silence, Astral Billy stammered. "I-is he dead?"

"Come here, Billy." Buffy said gently. Even with her vampire face and strange yellow eyes, kindness and understanding shone through her face, gentling the harsh features.

"I, I don't..."

"You have to do the rest." She insisted.

Billy reluctantly moved around the bed and over to the Ugly Man.

"What are they doing?" Willow asked, but Giles gestured at her to be quiet.

"I get it." Xander said quietly.

Buffy took Billy's hand. When Billy looked up at her, she said, "No more hiding."

Billy looked down again, and Buffy released his hand. Slowly, Billy reached down and peeled back Ugly Man's mask. A bright light lit the room, blinding everyone. Suddenly, everything is normal again. Astral Billy is gone, as is Ugly Man, and Buffy's face is normal. Buffy smiled and felt her face. Willow sighed in relief.

"Hey, he's waking up!" Xander said.

Everyone gathered around Billy's bed.

"I had the strangest dream. And you were in it, and you..." Billy looked confused. "Who are you people?"

They smiled at him.

"Let's get a doctor." Giles suggested.

Before they can, a man enters the room, and takes off his hat. "Oh! Huh. Billy's got company. I-I-I'm his kiddie league coach. I come by here every day, just hoping against hope that he's gonna wake up soon. He's, uh, my lucky nineteen."

Buffy and Giles exchanged a look.

"So, um, how is he?" The coach asked.

Calmly, hiding an inner fury, Buffy stepped aside to show that Billy was awake.

"He's awake."

"What?"

With certainty, Buffy said, "You blamed him for losing the game. So you caught up with him afterwards, didn't you?"

In an innocent voice, the coach said, "What are you talking about?"

Billy sat up. "You said that it was my fault that we lost."

The coach realized he'd been caught and spun away. Before he could escape, Xander grabbed him by the jacket and stopped him.

"It wasn't my fault. There's eight other players on the team. You know that." He lay down again. Buffy smiled at Billy. "Nice going."

Billy smiled back.

*****

Back at Sunnydale high, Willow, Buffy and Xander walked together outside.

"I just can't believe a kiddie league coach would do something like that." Buffy mused.

Xander scoffed. "Well, you obviously haven't played kiddie league. I'm surprised it wasn't one of the parents."

"I'm just glad he's behind bars where he belongs." Willow said.

"But that was kinda heroic, Xander, grabbing him and all."

"Well, I just did what anyone else would've. I mean, if you wanna label it _heroic_..."

Suddenly, Hank drove up, honked the horn on the car, then got out and waved at Buffy.

"Hi!"

"Have a killer weekend, guys!" Buffy said, then hurried over to her dad, who hugged her.

"Hi, sweetheart! Oh, it's so good to see you! How was your day?"

"Fine. You know, usual."

As they drove off, Willow turned to Xander. "Personal question?"

"Yeah, shoot!"

"When Buffy was a vampire, you weren't still, like, attracted to her, were you?"

Xander flushed. "Willow, how can you... I mean, that's really bent! She was... grotesque!"

Willow grinned. "Still dug her, huh?"

"I'm sick, I need help."

"Don't I know it."

Watching all this from the doorway of the school, Giles did not even feel a stir of jealousy over Xander's comment. In that moment, he had much more on his mind then the teenager's crush on Buffy. Although Buffy had appeared to be pleased to see her father, and had greeted him warmly, he knew that was not the end of it. Buffy's fears had been in no way dissolved, and there were still a lot of issues she would have to deal with.

He wanted to be the one to help her through that.

Knowing that made him think back to his declaration beside Buffy's grave. _I love you Buffy_. He had not realized it was true, until that moment. Did loving Buffy make him sick? Twisted? Maybe. He was much older then her, after all. But he could not see it as sick or wrong no matter which angle he looked at it from. It felt too _right_, too good. His love for Buffy, despite the fact that he had only known her a short time, was pure and real, no matter the difference in their ages.

But how was he going to deal with this realization? How would _Buffy_ react to it, if he ever had the courage to tell her the truth? Would she ever understand how he had wanted to kill Owen, that boy she had dated for all of ten minutes? Would she ever understand that the idea of her pain was so intolerable to him, that he had cried along with her at her father's cruelty, dream or no? Would she ever love him back?

******

Haha! That was fun ^ ^ It was really hard to do that justice though. You were right, Mmooch, there is a lot of wonderful material in that episode.

"Prophecy Girl" Will be next, and that will be awesome too XD Hopefully that will be posted tomorrow (Pray for Yorik!)


	7. Chapter 7

Welcome to the last episode of season one!!! Here's "Prophecy Girl". The episodes are still following the plot almost exactly, I just did a lot of character-switching to make it more Giles-y. : P

*****

_In every generation there is a Chosen One. She alone will stand against the vampires, the demons and the forces of darkness. She is the Slayer._

Rupert Giles was at his desk in the back of the library, researching. It was late and he soon stood to get some tea, needing the caffeine surge. As he waited for the tea to be ready, he wondered how Buffy was doing on patrol. The vampire situation was getting more and more dire lately, part of the reason he was up so late looking for a reason. There were so many vampires around that they probably out-populated the humans.

With a sigh, he returned to his desk with his tea, and read some text from the Codex out loud.

"Ho korias phanaytie toutay... tay nuktee. 'The Master shall rise...' Yes, yes, this is it! 'The Master shall rise, and the Slayer...'" Suddenly Giles paled, "My God!"

He could not believe what he had just read. As the message sank into his mind, he reached distractedly for his tea on the table in front of him. The cup began to jiggle, and he looked at it curiously. A few

seconds later the whole building began to shake. He got up from the desk and looked around, as his teacup smashed to the floor.

******

Giles had been at the library all night after the earthquake, desperately trying to find an alternative to the prophecy he had read about it the Codex. So far he had found nothing, but he was far from ready to give up.

As he left his office and headed towards the cage, Buffy walked into the library.

"Morning!"

Giles froze, and stared at her with wide eyes. Although the prophecy had obviously not come true yet, he was still surprised, and pleased, to see her alive and well in front of him.

Buffy looked around at the damage the earthquake had caused. "Wow. The damage looks fairly structural. Are we safe in here?"

"Buffy!" Her name came out as a slightly hoarse cry.

She looked at him with raised brows and patted her face. "What? Do I have something on my face?"

"No!" _Snap out of it Giles. There's no reason to frighten her until you're sure there's no way out of this. _"Uh, and, and yes, we're, we're safe." He gestured towards the stacks. "Uh, but probably best not to go up there."

"How're you doin' there, Giles? Get much sleep last night?"

"Um... I-I-I've been working."

"Me, too. I went hunting last night, and it is awfully sweet of you to ask. It's getting hairy out there, Giles. I killed three vampires last night, and one of them was practically on school grounds."

"Their numbers are increasing." Giles agreed, still distracted.

"And they're getting cockier. Look, I'm not loving it. Last night was a pretty close call."

"Yes."

She frowned at him. "Giles, care? I'm putting my life on the line battling the undead. Look, I broke a nail, okay? I'm wearing a press-on. The least you could do is exhibit some casual interest. You could go, 'hmm'."

Still distracted, Giles said, "Hmm?" Buffy gave him an exasperated look. "Oh, sorry. Um, yes, I'm very glad that you're alright." More glad then she could know, though in light of the current situation, he couldn't muster the energy to worry about a broken nail. "Uh, I-I need to verify, um... I just can't really talk right now."

"Fine. That's okay. I can't put it off any longer. I have to meet my terrible fate."

Suddenly, she had his full attention. He spun around to face her. "What?!"

"Biology." She explained.

The bell rang, and Buffy left, leaving a shocked Giles staring after her.

******

A little over an hour later, Giles looked up from the research – which had still gotten him nowhere – and realized that Buffy would be out of class right now, and would have a few minutes before her next one. This would be the perfect opportunity to tell her about the prophecy, or at least to enlist her and the other Scoobies to help him with the research, whether they knew what it was about or not. And besides, he wanted to make sure she was still okay. The prophecy was spooking him, and he felt absurdly overprotective.

Leaving the book, Giles walked out of the library and out into the courtyard of the school, where Buffy, Willow and Xander were walking down the stairs towards the benches outside.

Buffy exhaled as she walked in front of Xander and Willow. "Wow. That was boring."

"I don't feel that boring covers it." Xander mused.

Buffy agreed. "No, boring falls short."

"Even I was bored." Willow said, making a face. "And I'm a science nerd."

"Don't say that."

"I'm not ashamed. It's the computer age. Nerds are in." Suddenly Willow looked worried. "They're still in, right?"

Xander rolled his eyes. "Willow, don't you have a thing?"

"A thing?" Xander shot her a meaningful look. "The thing! That I have! Which is... a thing that I have to go to."

"See ya later." She said, and took off.

Buffy and Giles watched her flee with similar expressions of confusion.

"What on earth is her deal?" Buffy asked.

Giles looked suspiciously at Xander. It appeared, that for some reason, Xander wanted Buffy alone. Carefully, he moved a bit further away from them, keeping to the shadows.

"Uh, she's Willow." Xander gave a forced, nervous laugh. "So, uh, Buffy, I wanted to, um... There was this thing I wanted to ask you, to talk to you about."

"Okay, what's up?"

"Uh, let's go over here and sit."

He led her over to a bench. Luckily, it was close enough that Giles did not have to move; he could still see and hear them from where he was hiding.

"Okay, now you're making me nervous." Buffy said worriedly.

"Oh, no, no, there's nothing to be nervous about. Really, it's silly. Ha, ha!" He laughed again.

They reached the bench, and Xander was undeterred by the fact that another boy was already sitting there.

"Hey." He said, "Leave."

The boy left.

"Thanks."

They sat down.

"Well?"

"Um... You know, Buffy, uh, Spring Fling is a... time for students to gather and... Oh, God! I want you to go to the dance with me. You and me, on a date."

Giles' eyebrows shot up, and he leaned forward out of his hiding place – but still luckily out of sight – too see Buffy's reaction. He watched her face, measuring her expression in much the same way that Xander was. For the moment, she looked only surprised.

"I-I don't know what to say." Buffy stammered.

"well, you're not laughing." Xander pointed out, sounding hopeful, "So that's a good start. Buffy, I

like you. A lot. And I know we're friends, and we've had experiences... We've fought some blood-sucking fiends, and that's all been a good time. But I want more. I wanna dance with you."

Buffy's expression turned anxious. "Xander, you're one of my best friends. You and Willow..."

"Well, Willow's not looking to date you. Or if she is, she's playing it pretty close to the chest." He let out another nervous burst of laughter.

"I don't want to spoil the friendship that we have." She said gently.

Giles' heart leapt in happiness. She wasn't going to date him. Whether the same thing would hold true for him, or if Buffy would ever feel something for him, was irrelevant at the moment. The point was she wasn't going to date Xander. Giles was unsure if he would be able to forgive the boy, if she did.

"Well, I don't want to spoil it either. But that's not the point, is it? You either feel a thing or you don't."

Buffy looked down, and away for a moment, then looked up at him, meeting his gaze clearly. "I don't. Xander, I'm, I'm sorry. I-I just don't think of you that way."

Xander blinked. "Well, try. I'll wait." He gave a weak smile.

Buffy's face creased with concern. "Xander..."

"Nah. Forget it." He stood abruptly. "I'm not him. I mean, I guess a guy's gotta be undead to make time with you."

Giles was taken aback. _I'm not him_. Who was the boy talking about? _Angel_? Buffy didn't love Angel did she?

"That's really harsh." Buffy said.

Xander sighed. "Look, I'm sorry. I don't handle rejection well. Funny! Considering all the practice I've had, huh?"

"Xander, I'm sorry, I don't know..."

"You know what? Let's just not."

He turned and left. Buffy let out a deep breath, watching him go. But Giles was watching Buffy. He had mixed emotions over what had happened. Now that he was sure Buffy wasn't going to date Xander, he could feel sympathy for the boy. He couldn't imagine the pain of being rejected by Buffy. But he was also certain that Xander did not love her on the same level that he did.

He also felt for Buffy. Xander was her friend, and whether she had meant to or not, she had just caused a rift between them.

And then there was Angel. Did Buffy actually _love _the vampire? He knew she had almost kissed him – before he revealed his demonic face – but he had thought that was the end of that. How could she love _Angel_?

Because none of the Scoobies were in any condition to help him at the moment, he turned away and headed back to the library alone. He needed to focus on his research. Whoever Buffy did or did not love at that moment was irrelevant. Her life was more important, and he needed to make sure she kept breathing.

However, the conversation had given him an idea. There was one person who would be able to help him, and if what Xander had said was true, he would be more then willing to help.

He picked up the phone and dialled the number that Angel had given Buffy in case of emergencies.

(**A/N: **Sorry, I know that's far fetched, but I have _no idea _how Giles got Angel's phone number, or how, later in the episode, Xander knew where he lived. So I had to make something up.)

"Hello. Uh, this is Giles. Uh... Uh, Rupert Giles."

As he spoke on the phone, Jenny Calendar, another teacher at the school who happened to be a techno-pagan, walked into his office.

Giles spoke into the phone. "I-I need to see you. No, I-I realize that. Uh... Come after sundown. Good. I'll see you then." He hung up.

"You know, that outfit looks just like the one you wore yesterday. Only wrinklier. Were you here all night?" Jenny asked.

"Sorry, uh... I'm not really up to, uh, socializing just now." Giles muttered, his mind already returning to his books.

"Something's going on, Rupert, and I'm guessing you already know what it is."

Giles turned and got up. He _really _wasn't in the mood to deal with Jenny, but any information she could bring to the table would be helpful. "What do you know?"

"Well, I have been surfing the 'Net, looking for unexplained incidents. You know, people are always sending stuff my way. They know the occult's my turf. Now, here is the latest. A cat last week gave birth to a litter of snakes. A family was swimming in Whisper Lake when the lake suddenly began to boil. And Mercy Hospital last night, a boy was born with his eyes facing inward. I'm not stupid. This is apocalypse stuff. And throw in last night's earthquake, and I'd say we've got a problem. I would say the end is pretty seriously nigh."

Giles scowled. Not at all helpful. He knew that. Was it worth having to associate himself with Jenny Calendar – who tended to be bold, flirtatious and endlessly annoying – just on the off chance she found something interesting? The image of Buffy's face rose in Giles' mind, and he knew he would put up with anything, for her.

"I don't know if I can trust you." He said.

"I helped you cast that demon out of the Internet. I think that merits some trust. Look, I'm scared, okay? Oh, plus, I've got this, this crazy monk e-mailing me from Cortona about some Anointed One?"

Giles frowned. "The Anointed One? He's dead!"

"Someone's dead?"

Oops. "Uh, who is this monk?"

"Uh, a brother Luca something? Keeps sending out global mailings about a prophecy."

"I need you to talk to him, find out everything he knows."

Jenny frowned. "Look, Rupert, you haven't told me jack, so what's with the order?"

Giles snapped. "Just do it! I'll e-explain later."

"You'd better."

******

"It's clear. It's what's gonna happen. Uh, it's happening now!" Giles was facing Angel, showing him the text in the Codex. Angel was his last chance, but he was staring to loose hope. Angel seemed just as lost as he was, and almost as upset.

"It can't be. You've gotta be wrong." Angel argued.

As if he hadn't repeated that to himself a million times? "I've checked it against all my other volumes. It's very real."

"Well, there's gotta be some way around it." Angel snapped.

"_Listen_." Giles insisted. He did not need disbelief and anger right now. He needed results. Solutions. "Some prophecies are, are a bit dodgy. They're, they're mutable. Buffy herself has, has thwarted them time and time again, but this is the Codex. There is nothing in it that does not come to pass."

"Then you're reading it wrong."

"I wish to God I were! But it's very plain! Tomorrow night Buffy will face the Master, and she will die."

His voice broke on the last word, but Angel did not notice.

"Well, have you verified the text?"

Suddenly, there was a slightly hysterical laugh from the doorway. Both Angel and Giles swung towards the door, to see a stunned Buffy standing in the doorway to the office. They exchanged a look.

She walked away from the office door, and Giles moved around Angel to follow her out of the room. Although the instantly possessive movement startled Angel, he did not contest Giles' movement, stopping in the doorway.

"So that's it, huh?" Buffy asked, her voice weak and trembling. "I remember the drill. One Slayer dies, next one's called! Wonder who she is." She looked at Giles, and he felt a horrible pressure on his heart. "Will you train her? Or will they send someone else?"

_Never. Only you, Buffy. _"Buffy, I..."

"They say how he's gonna kill me? Do you think it'll hurt?"

Tears flowed freely from her eyes, and Giles felt himself tearing up as well. He stepped forward, wanting to hug her, to comfort her in any way he could. But she put her hands up and stepped back from him.

"Don't touch me! Were you even gonna tell me?"

"I was hoping that I wouldn't have to. That there was... some way around it. I..."

"I've got a way around it. I quit!" Her voice broke, and she looked so fragile in that moment, that Giles was sure she would shatter at any moment.

"It's not that simple." Angel said from the doorway.

"I'm making it that simple! I quit! I resign, I-I'm fired, you can find someone else to stop the Master from taking over!"

"I'm not sure that anyone else can. All the... the signs indicate..."

"The signs?" Buffy cried. She grabbed a book and threw it at him. Giles managed to duck the blow. "READ ME THE SIGNS!" She threw another. " TELL ME MY FORTUNE! YOU'RE SO USEFUL SITTING HERE WITH ALL YOUR BOOKS! YOU'RE REALLY A LOTTA HELP!"

"No, I don't suppose I am." Giles murmured brokenly, glancing away from her.

"I know this is hard." Angel said.

"What do you know about this? You're never gonna die!" She screamed at him.

Giles stepped forward again, ignoring Buffy when she tried to move away, and placed his hands on her shoulders, trying to meet her desperate, terrified eyes. "Buffy, do you think I want anything to happen to you? Do you think I could stand it? We just gotta figure out a way..."

"I already did. I quit, remember? Pay attention!"

Angel spoke again. "Buffy, if the Master rises..."

Buffy yanked the silver cross from her neck. "I don't care!" Then she turned suddenly, strangely calm. "I don't care." She turned tearful eyes to Giles, and lifted a hand to his cheek briefly, before closing her eyes tightly, turning away, and dropping her hand. "Giles, I'm sixteen years old. I don't wanna die."

Buffy dropped the cross to the ground, and left without another word.

*****

The next day, Giles was in his office, still desperately going over the codex. He knew, now, that there was no way around it, but he still had to _try_. Had to do something. He could not let Buffy die. It had not escaped his attention that she had not shown up at school today.

Suddenly, out of nowhere, Giles felt a surge of dizziness. The feeling did not bother him anymore, they came so often that he barely noticed the side affects to his visions. But the fact that he was having a vision at all terrified him. Buffy hadn't already been lured to the Master, had she?

Instead of showing him Buffy, his vision showed him Willow and Cordelia walking down the hall. Giles' forehead creased in confusion. What did they have to do with Buffy? Where _was _she?

"_Oh, Kevin said that he'd bring everything to the Bronze last night. He promised! We'll never get everything ready in time." Cordelia said. _

"_He probably forgot. It's not _that_ big a deal."_

"_Uh, you don't understand. I'm not mad! He totally flaked on me. On me! And I don't even care. God help me, I think it's cute! Oh..."_

_Willow smiled. The two girls reached the Audio-Visual room, and saw Kevin – Cordelia's boyfriend – and his friends through the windows. _

"_There they are! They're watching cartoons. That's so cu... That's not cute. That's annoying. I'm annoyed." _

"_Right." Willow agreed, hiding a smile. "I'm furious."_

"_Men. I don't know why we put up with them."_

"_I hear ya."_

_Cordelia opened the door. "Obviously, Kevin has underestimated the power of my icy _

_stare." _

_Kevin's body fell out into the hall at Cordelia's feet. He had a vampire bite on his neck, and all his blood had been drained. _

_Cordelia screamed. "Oh, my God! Kevin!" She dropped to her knees besides him. "No!" _

_Willow looked up from Kevin's body, and, in a sort of daze, entered the room. She took in the sight of the dead bodies, the blood, that was everywhere, pooling on the floor and streaked across the TV. In the center of the TV, in front of the cartoons that played cheerfully in contrast, was a bloody handprint. Even Giles, watching from the safety of his office, felt queasy at the sight. _

"_Kevin!" Cordelia wailed. _

_Suddenly, the scene was changing in front of Giles' eyes. For a moment, he thought he was coming out of the vision and then another image rose. It was Buffy, looking stunningly beautiful in a long white dress, apparently getting ready for the dance. Giles felt a wave of relief, pleased to know that, for the moment at least, she was safe. Buffy was looking at herself in a mirror, with a thoughtful expression on her face, when her mother entered the room_

"_Buffy?! There's something on the news. Willow." _

_Buffy spun around in shock, and the scene changed again, until Giles could see Willow's room. Willow was curled up on the bed, hugging her knees. Her eyes are red, her cheeks streaked with the remnants of now-dried tears. Buffy was sitting on the edge of her bed, looking at her with sad eyes. _

"_I've seen so much." She murmured, in a dead, lost voice. "I thought I could take anything. But, Buffy, this... this was different."_

"_It'll be alright." Buffy whispered gently. _

"_I'm trying to think how to say it... to explain it so you understand." _

_Giles knew that Buffy understood all too well. With everything that she had witnessed... _

_So much pain and so much death for someone so young to deal with. For _anyone _to deal with. _

"_It doesn't matter as long as you're okay." _

"_I'm not okay. I knew those guys. I go to that room every day. And when I walked in there, it... it wasn't our world anymore. They made it theirs. And they had fun." A tear rolled down Willow's cheek. "What are we gonna do?_

"_What we have to." Buffy stood from the bed and let out a breath. Suddenly her expression was fiercely determined. "Promise me you'll stay in tonight, okay?"_

_Willow nodded, and Buffy started to leave. _

"_Buffy?"_

_Buffy stopped and turned back. Willow smiled tearfully at her. _

"_I like your dress."_

_Buffy looked down at it, smiled back weakly. "Take Care." _

_Then she was gone. _

The vision faded, this time for good.

******

"Rupert?"

At first, Giles did not hear the voice calling his name. He was too lost in thought, going over the events that had occurred in his vision. He knew that look in Buffy's eyes. As terrified she was at facing her own death, she was prepared to go against the Master now. In fact, she was planning on seeking him out. That had been easy enough to read, in her expression and in her words. Things were different now. The vampires were killing people at the school, hurting her friends. There was nothing she was not prepared to face now. As much as Giles admired that courage and loyalty in her, he could not let her die. The very concept was incomprehensible.

"Rupert?"

Giles finally looked up, and realized that Jenny Calendar was standing in front of his desk. This time, he could not even muster enough energy to be annoyed by her presence. He just burst out of his chair, spun around and hurried to the cage, began to pull out weapons and prepare them.

"Okay, so I was thinking about what you told me earlier. This Master guy tried to open the Hellmouth. But he got stuck in it, and now all the signs are reading that he's gonna get out, which opens the Hellmouth, which brings the demons, which ends the world."

Distractedly, Giles muttered, "Yes. That about sums it up, yes."

"The part that gets me, though, is where Buffy is the Vampire Slayer. She's so _little_."

Giles ignored that. "You know how to get in touch with this, uh, brother Luca chap?"

"Hmm. As far as I can tell, no one can. He's disappeared. Did send out one last global though. A short one."

"What did it say?"

"Isaiah 11:6, which I dutifully looked up."

Giles took the initiative, pondering over the words even as he said it out loud. "'The wolf shall live with the lamb, the leopard shall lie down with the kid, the calf, the lion and the fatling together, and the little child to lead them.'"

Jenny frowned. "That's kinda warm and fuzzy for a message of doom."

"Well, that depends where he's leading them to. Aurelius wrote of the Anointed One, 'The Slayer will not know him, and he will lead her into Hell.'"

"So Luca thinks the Anointed is a kid."

"If the vampire that Buffy killed was in fact not the Anointed, then it may well be."

"Well, then we need to warn her."

Giles turned his full attention back to the weapons. "I don't intend involving her at all."

"What do you mean?"

"Buffy's not gonna face the Master. I am." _Anything to protect her. _

"No, you're not."

Giles and Jenny looked over and saw Buffy approaching. Giles felt a swell of fear, a tightening in his chest. She would _not _stop him. He could not let her do this.

"So, I'm looking for a kid, huh? And he'll lead me to the Master?" Buffy asked.

"Buffy, I'm not gonna send you out there to die." Giles insisted. "Now, you were right. I-I've waded around in these old books for so long, I've forgotten what the real world is like. I-it's time I found out."

"You're still not going up against the Master." She said quietly, a strange expression in her eyes.

"I've made up my mind." He told her firmly.

"So have I."

"I made up my mine first!" He said childishly, "I'm older and wiser than you, and just... just do what you're told for once! Alright?"

"That's not how it goes. I'm the Slayer."

"I don't care what the books say. I defy prophecy, and I am going. There's nothing you can say will change my mind."

"I know."

She turned, as if to leave, and Giles squinted his eyes suspiciously. Then she spun and punched him hard in the face. He crumpled to the ground. As Jenny scrambled to help him, Buffy picked up her cross from the table.

Giles was not quite unconscious, but he knew any strenuous movement would send him off to La-La land. So he stayed motionless, watching Buffy's form in from of him, feeling more helpless then he ever had before.

"When he wakes up tell him... I don't know." She looked down at him, her eyes shimmering. "Think of something cool, tell him I said it."

"You fight the Master, and you'll die." Jenny said.

She did not seem surprised that Jenny knew. "Maybe." She picked up the crossbow. "Maybe I'll take him with me."

As she turned to leave, Giles closed his eyes. With the last burst of energy in him, he pushed out with his mind, trying to link it to hers. He had to see. Had to be with her. If only he could get it to work again...

He blacked out.

*****

_Buffy was walking across the school grounds, looking beautiful and powerful in the moonlight. In her long white dress, with the crossbow held carefully in one arm, she looked almost ethereal. She looked around her, and spotted a small boy standing in the middle of the school grounds. _

"_Help me...." The boy cried. _

_Buffy lowered the crossbow and walked over to the boy. _

"_It's okay. I know who you are." She said. _

_The boy held out his hand in an endearingly childish gesture, and Buffy took it. He led her away, taking her towards the master... and her death. _

"No!"

Giles pushed himself forcibly out of the vision and into reality, only to find three pairs of eyes look over to him. Ignoring his apparently random shout, Xander turned back to Jenny.

"She _what?_"

"I told you there was something going on with her." Willow said.

"And she knew about this prophecy of yours?"

Giles nodded, got up from the floor.

"Aw, man, what do we do?"

"We stay calm, first thing." Giles said. _At least until I gain the strength to go find her. _

"Calm?" Xander cried.

"I think he's right." Willow said.

"I'm sorry, calm may work for Locutus of the Borg here, but I'm freaked out, and I intend to stay that way."

"Xander..."

Giles was no longer listening to Xander. Despite what he had told Buffy's friends, he was far from calm, and he spun to Jenny. "How could you let her go?"

"I didn't _let _her go!" Jenny protested.

"Well, how can we help her?" Willow asked.

"Uh, I'm sorry to bring this up, but we also have an apocalypse to worry about?" Jenny reminded them.

"Do you mind?" Xander snapped.

"How come she's in the club?"

Jenny, naturally, took offence. "Hey! Once the Master gets free, the Hellmouth opens, the demons come to party, and everybody dies."

Giles was too far gone to pretend to be polite to her. "Uh, uh, I don't care. I'm sorry, I don't. Right now I have to help Buffy."

"We don't even know where she's gone." Willow said.

"No. But I can find out."

******

Giles pounded on Angel's door. He opened it.

"Oh. Look who's here."

Obviously, Angel was still angry at Giles for the prophecy thing. As if it was _his _fault. As if he wanted Buffy to die.

"Mind if I come in?" He entered.

Angel closed the door after him. "Make yourself at home." His tone was scathingly sarcastic.

"She's gone."

"Whadaya mean?"

"Buffy, she's gone to fight the Master." Giles snapped.

"He'll kill her."

"No. We're not going to let that happen."

"Well, what do you propose we do about it?"

"Listen, I know you know where the Master is. You have to take him to me."

"You're way outta your league, Watcher. The Master'll kill you before you can even breathe. If you're lucky."

"How can I say this clearly?" Giles mused. Then he held up a cross, and Angel growled. As Giles advanced upon him, Angel fell back onto the couch.

"I don't like you. At the end of the day, I pretty much think you're a vampire." Slowly, he lowered the cross. "But Buffy likes you. I don't know how much, but she likes you. She trusts you. She thinks you're a real person. And right now I need you to prove her right."

Angel blinked, realizing. "You're in love with her."

Giles laughed humourlessly. "Aren't you?"

******

As Angel led him along the twisted tunnels of the underground, Giles felt another vision coming and stumbled slightly.

"What's wrong?" Angel asked.

He shook his head. "I can't explain right now. You're going to have to lead me."

Reluctantly, Angel took Giles' arm and forced him to keep stumbling forward as his vision went black and the scene unfolded in front of him.

_The boy had stopped walking, and Buffy looked down at him. He pointed, and Buffy went down into the tunnel. The Anointed one walked away and Buffy made her way through the tunnel to the floor below. Candles burned everywhere. _

"_Welcome."_

_The Master's voice seemed to be coming from all directions. _

"_Thanks for having me."_

"_Y'know, you really oughtta talk to your contractor. Looks like you got some water damage."_

_The Master's voice sneered. "Oh, good. The feeble banter portion of the fight. Why don't we just cut to the..."_

_Buffy spun around and shot a bolt from the crossbow in the direction of the voice. The Master stepped out and caught it, midflight. Buffy faced him completely and reloaded. _

"_Nice shot. But you're not going to kill me with that thing."_

"_Don't be so sure."_

_The Master laughed. "You still don't understand your part in all this, do you? You are not the hunter. You are the lamb." _

_He had vanished again, so Buffy began slowly walking around, searching for him. She came across a dead and rotted body, but ignored it. _

"_You know, for someone who's all powerful, you sure do like to hide."_

"_I'm waiting for you." The Master said, "I want this moment to last."_

"_Well, I don't."_

_She searched some more, then suddenly, the Master was right beside her. _

"_I understand."_

_She turned around and the Master knocked the crossbow out of her hands, grabbing her by the neck. _

_Buffy swung up her arm, knocking his hand away, started to run. But the Master held up his hand, forced her to freeze with his hypnotic powers. She stared into his face, and could not move. Unhurried, he approached her, came up behind her. He slipped her leather jacket over her shoulders. _

_Buffy's breath came out in frightened pants. _

"_You tried. It was noble of you. You heard the prophecy that I was about to break free and you came to stop me. But prophecies are tricky creatures. They don't tell you everything." The Master's voice lowered to a whisper. "You're the one that sets me free! If you hadn't come, I couldn't go. Think about that!" _

Giles watched in horror. This could not be happening. Even as he recognized the truth in the Master's words, he could not believe them. He, Rupert Giles, was the one who had unintentionally told Buffy about the prophecy. The one who had told her there was no way to avoid it. If she had never found out, she ... Despite all of Buffy's good intentions, she was about to die releasing a great evil on the world, instead of stopping it.

_The Master paused a moment to revel in the moment, then bent down and bit at the base of her neck. He drank deeply and then released her. _

"_Oh, God! The power!"_

_Buffy fell to her knees. _

"_And by the way..."_

_She fell facedown into the water._

"_I like your dress."_

_The master stepped over the edge of his confines and pushed against the force field around him. It broke in a burst of light and energy, and he left._

"No!"

"Giles?"

Giles burst past Angel and ran on his own, towards the light he could now see coming out of an adjoining tunnel.

"It's too late! He's gone up!" Angel called after him.

Giles ran into the lair, instantly spotting Buffy. He scrambled down to the floor and rushed to her side as Angel stumbled into the opening of the lair. Giles pulled Buffy out of the water, pulling her into the safety of his arms. He tried to listen for breathing. Nothing. Buffy was dead.

Pain.

This pain was a thousand – no, a _million_ – times worse then the pain he had felt when Buffy had 'died' during Billy's rein of nightmares. This was no dream. Buffy was not going to come back this time, neither as a human or a vampire. There was no way he could _fix _it this time. He felt like reality was shattering around him. There was no way that any human could survive this level of agony; could continue to live after loosing something so dear.

"She's dead!" He choked out the words, and Angel looked down at him in disbelief, then hurried towards them.

Giles looks down at them and swallows hard.

"She can't be dead." He protested weakly.

"She's not breathing." Each word, each of his own breaths were painful, as if the physical act of surviving each moment without her was too difficult.

"But if she drowned, uh, there's a shot! CPR! You'd have to do it. I have no breath."

Giles glanced down at her beloved face. Slowly, he took off his jacket and tossed it over her. He knelt be her, his eyes roaming her peaceful expression. Then he laid his lips against hers and began to blow life into her lungs.

After a moment, He leaned back and began to pump her chest.

His voice lowered to a hoarse whisper. "Please, Buffy, you can't do this to me. Don't leave me, Buffy, please."

He did not notice the thoughtful look Angel shot him. Instead, he leaned down and tried again, desperate for a breath.

"Please... I love you Buffy. Please don't leave me."

Angel gave him a look of deep sorrow, but Giles didn't give up.

Finally, Buffy's eyes flew open and she drew a rough breath, her eyes taking in the scene.

"Buffy!"

She turned her head to the side and coughed out a bunch of water. Giles shot Angel a beaming smile, and Angel blinked at the overwhelming joy on the other man's face, at the tears of relief that brightened his eyes.

Giles put his hand on Buffy's forehead and stroked it gently as she looked up at him.

"Buffy."

"Giles?"

"Welcome back."

Giles helped Buffy stand up.

"Easy. Easy."

She stood, and for a moment, they could only stand there. Angel took a few steps back from the pair, feeling almost as if he were intruding on a very personal moment, although neither said or did anything. They just stared at each other, but the depth of emotion that passed between them was too great to name.

Reluctantly, Buffy turned away. "The Master?"

"He's gone up."

Buffy started to go towards the tunnel to the surface.

"No. You're still weak." Giles protested.

She stopped, turned to face him. "No. No, I feel strong. I feel different. Let's go."

******

On the surface now, Angel, Buffy and Giles made their way towards the school, Buffy leading the way.

"So, how do you know where the Master's going?" Giles asked.

"I know."

A vampire moved in front of them, trying to block their way into the school. Buffy was not even fazed.

"Oh, look, a bad guy."

She punched him carelessly on her way by, and he fell to the side.

Giles hurried after her, his face etched in concern. Something was very wrong. Buffy was acting so strangely...

They hurried into the building, to the stairs leading to the roof. Buffy came around the corner in the hall.

"Okay, you two wait here; keep the rest of the vampires off me."

"Right." Angel said, at the same time Giles thought, rather childishly, _As if. _

"Angel, better put on your game face."

Angel vamped out. "I'm ready."

"One way or another, this won't take long."

She looked at them both once more and then hurried up to the roof.

Giles followed close behind, but just far enough away so she wouldn't notice he was there. Angel did not even bother to protest, merely moved so he was covering both their posts.

******

The Master was looking down through the skylight into the library below, clapping his hands at the sight of the tentacle monster that was crawling its way through the floor, attacking Willow, Jenny, Cordelia and Xander.

"Yes. Come forth, my child. Come into my world."

Buffy came up onto the roof behind him. "I don't think it's yours just yet."

The Master turned his head and looked at her in shock. "You're dead!"

As Giles came up to the doorway behind her, unnoticed by either, Buffy gave a short laugh. "I may be dead, but I'm still pretty. Which is more than I can say for you."

"You were destined to die! It was written!"

She shrugged. "What can I say? I flunked the written."

The Master growled and reached his arm out to try his hypnosis on her again.

"Come here!"

Buffy began to approach the Master, apparently hypnotized. Giles began to move from the doorway towards them as the Master grabbed her throat again.

"Did you really think you could best me here when you couldn't below?" He let go of her neck.

Buffy tilted her head, causing Giles to pause. "You have fruit punch mouth."

The Master blinked. "What?"

She swung a hard punch into his face, knocking him down. "Save the hypnosis crap for the tourists."

As he stood, Buffy executed a swinging roundhouse kick that connected squarely with his face. He swiped at her and she jerked back, but he managed to slice her with his fingernails across her upper right chest, drawing blood. She punched him in the kidney, and he punches her in the jaw. She tried to punch him again, but he blocked her and punched her in the face, sending her flying backward into the wall behind her.

Before Giles could react, Buffy launched herself into a front tuck over the Master's head and landed between him and the skylight. She kicked him in the side with a side snap kick, but he quickly turned around and grabs her by the neck again.

"Where are your jibes now?"

She looked behind her and saw something in the library below that brightened her expression.

"Will you laugh when my Hell is on Earth?" The Master demanded.

"You're that amped about Hell?" She grabbed him by the neck in turn. "Go there!"

She lifted him up and flipped him over herself and through the skylight. He fell down in a shower of glass and was impaled on a splintered table. He instantly turned to ash, leaving only his skeleton on the table. The people in the library slowly stood, looking up at her, and Giles came up beside her, placing a hand on her shoulder. She did not seem surprised by his presence, only lifted her hand, and placed it over his.

******

Cordelia opened the library doors for Giles, Angel and Xander.

"The vampires?" Giles asked.

"Gone."

"The Master?" Angel asked.

"Dead." Xander replied.

Giles smiled. "The Hellmouth is closed." He glanced over at Buffy, noticed she seemed spaced out. "Buffy... Buffy?"

She blinked. "Oh, sorry. It's just been a really weird day." She smiled at the understatement.

"Yes!" Angel nodded. "Buffy died."

Willow raised her eyebrows. "Wow! Harsh."

Giles smiled gently down at Buffy. "I should have known that wouldn't stop you."

"Well, what do we do now?" Jenny asked.

"I don't know about the rest of you, but I'd like to get out of this place." Willow said, "I don't like the library very much anymore."

"Hey! I hear there's a dance at the Bronze tonight." Xander suggested. "Could be fun."

"Yeah!" Cordelia agreed.

Willow looked at the Slayer. "Buffy?"

"Sure! We saved the world. I say we party!" She looked down at her dress. "I mean, I got all pretty."

Jenny gestured to the Master. "And what about him?"

Buffy shrugged. "He's not going anywhere. Loser."

"You can come with us, Angel." Willow offered.

"Okay, but I'm not dancing, though." He insisted.

She laughed. "We'll see."

"I'm hungry." Buffy mused.

"So what's the story with the car?" Giles asked.

Cordelia brightened. "Oh, that was me, saving the day!"

"Is anybody else hungry?" Buffy asked, apparently obsessed with the topic.

"You could get a drink." Willow suggested to Angel. Then she paused. "Well, no, don't do that. Just hang."

"I'm really, really hungry."

To distract her from food, Giles hung back with Buffy and said,

"By the way, I really like your dress."

She smiled at him. "Yeah, yeah. Big hit with everyone."

******

OMG THAT WAS SO MUCH FUN TO WRITE!!!! Lol I'm still having adrenaline rush from the pure fun in that. XD Anyway, the character switching part was a bit confusing, but I think it worked. Hope you all like ^ ^ Next chapter will be late - computer is dying


	8. Chapter 8

Hey guys… sorry this one took forever. My computer hasn't been working for two weeks, but I finally got a chance to get onto my sisters computer and type this up

********

_In every generation there is a Chosen One. She alone will stand against the vampires, the demons and the forces of darkness. She is the Slayer._

She was back in Sunnydale.

Buffy wished she could be happy about her return. After all, she was going to see her mother again, and her friends, and Giles. She hadn't seen any of them all summer and she missed them all fiercely.

But she was back where the master was. For some reason, she could not get him out of her head. Despite the fact that she had killed him at the end of the school year, on prom night none the less, she still had the horrible feeling that he was out there, waiting for her. Waiting to kill her. Again.

Sometimes the terror got overwhelming. All summer long, in between overindulgent shopping trips with her father, she had trained until she collapsed with exhaustion, or until her knuckles bled from wild, mindless punches. She was determined to be ready for whatever the Hellmouth chose to throw at her next. _Without _the help of her friends. Without the help of Giles, if she could get away with it. She refused to put them in any unnecessary danger.

Because she wanted to clear her mind before facing anyone, she had asked her father to drop her off at the park a few blocks from her house. He had driven her luggage to her mother's, while she walked home. She had walked nearly to the end of the park already, and yet her mind was still as muddled as before.

Buffy spotted two people against the wall ahead. At first, she could not tell who it was. The girl was sitting on the wall, and the boy was leaning in with a napkin to wipe something off the girl's face. Then he leaned in close, as if about to kiss her. Buffy's head tilted slightly to the side. It was a cute scene.

Suddenly, a vampire popped up out of nowhere, just behind the girl. The couple spotted it, and the girl screamed and jumped off the wall. As the boy pulled her away, Buffy finally saw that it was Willow and Xander.

"Willow, Run!" Xander cried, standing between Willow and the vampire.

After recovering from her shock that the 'cute' couple was Willow and Xander, Buffy swore and went over and behind the wall, running stealthily along the side towards the vampire. Why did neither of them have stakes, or at least crosses? It was careless and dangerous. She was trying to keep them _safe_, dammit.

Willow watched with wide eyes as Xander punched the vampire in the face. Ignoring the punch, the vampire grabbed Xander and tried to bite his neck as Xander began to struggle uselessly. Before the vampire could do anything, however, a hand came up and grabbed the vampire by the shoulder, pulling him off the boy easily.

Buffy punched the vampire in the face – her punch having a much better affect thenXander's had – then kneed him between the legs and flipped him onto his back.

"Hey guys!" She said cheerfully.

The vampire got up, and Buffy turned her attention back to him, kicking him in the chest and sending him into a tree, where he was impaled on a dead branch. As he turned to ash, Buffy smiled at her friends. "Miss me?"

******

_Buffy would be back today. _

It was the only thought that had been in Giles' head all morning. Indeed, it was one of the only things he had thought about all summer. He had not expected to miss her so much. Currently, Giles was walking along outside the school with principal Snyder, trying to focus on what the other man was saying.

"The first day back. It always gets me."

"Yes."

"I mean, it's incredible. One day the campus is completely bare. Empty. The next, there are children everywhere. Like locusts. Crawling around, mindlessly bent on feeding and mating. Destroying everything in sight in their relentless, pointless desire to exist.

"I do enjoy these pep talks." Giles lied. "Have you ever considered, given your abhorrence of children, school's principal was not, perhaps, your true vocation?"

"Somebody's got to keep an eye on them." Snyder said, with the tone of a martyr. "They're just a bunch of hormonal time bombs. Every time a pretty girl walks by every boy turns into a gibbering fool."

"Hmm." Giles glanced away, looking for an escape – any excuse that would get him away from Snyder and closer to his library. Buffy would probably go there first. Then he spotted Jenny Calendar. Mentally, he took a moment to figure out who was more annoying. But it didn't really matter. She would get him inside.

"Ms. Calendar!"

Jenny's face brightened. "Mr. Giles!"

"Well, I, uh, um... Hello!"

Snyder was muttering in the background, but he had obviously not noticed that Giles' attention was elsewhere, so he ignored him.

"It's good to see you."

"Yes." What was a good excuse? "Uh, were you headed to the, uh…faculty room?"

That was close enough to the library, he supposed.

"Sounds like fun!"

They left, and Giles tried to make polite conversation as he scanned the crowds of students for his girl.

"How was your summer?"

"Extreme. I did Burning Man in Black Rock, ohhh, such a great festival, you should've been there. They had drum rituals, mobile sculptures, raves, naked mud dances, you would've just... hated it with a fiery passion!"

"I can't imagine finding any redeeming, uh..." He stopped and frowned at her. "Naked?"

"Hmm. And you probably spent all summer with your nose in a book."

In between thinking about Buffy, training, and thinking about Buffy. "Yes. I suppose you'd consider that frightfully dull."

"Depends on the book."

She smiled flirtatiously at him, but Giles was no longer paying her the slightest attention to her. He had just spotted Willow and Xander coming down the stairs, with Buffy not far behind them.

"Giles!" Willow called in greeting.

"Yo! G-man! What's up?"

"Nice to see you. And don't ever call me that."

Buffy was silent, but her eyes did not leave his face.

"Hi, kids." Jenny said.

Willow was the only one who graced her with a 'hello'.

"How are you?" Giles asked, his expression concerned. Buffy seemed… different. There was something wrong, he was sure of that. But what?

"Live and kicking." She said with obviously false cheer.

As they all looked around to see if anyone had heard, Buffy rolled her eyes and suggested, "Uh, I think you can get a little more volume if you speak from the diaphragm."

"Sorry."

Jenny spoke up. "We've got vampires? I thought the Hellmouth was closed."

Giles looked at her in surprise. He hadn't even noticed she was still there. "Well, it's, it's closed, but not gone. The mystical energy that emanates from it is still concentrated in this area."

"Which means we're still the undead's favorite party town." Xander pointed out.

Giles mused to himself. "I wonder if they're here for any purpose, particularly."

"You're the Watcher." Buffy reminded him, "I just work here."

"Yes, I-I must consult my books."

Xander grinned and looked at his watch. "Oh, eight minutes and thirty-three seconds, pay up." Willow handed him a dollar. "I called ten minutes before you'd consult your books about something. Thanks."

"We better get to class." Willow suggested.

When Buffy started to walk away, Giles called, "Oh, uh, Buffy! Uh, I realize you've only just returned, but when you're ready I-I think we should start your training

again."

"I'm ready. I'll see you after school."

Giles frowned. "Well, I-I-I understand if, if you want a few days to..."

"I'm ready." She left.

******

That afternoon after school, Buffy set out to prove to Giles that she was, as she had said, ready. Ready to face anything, ready to protect him, Willow and Xander. Ready to be the slayer she should have been all along.

First she did tumbling and kicking exercises that had her spinning and moving all around the library. When Giles wanted her to practice with the quarterstaff, she beat onto Giles' hand pads as hard as she could, and knocked him into some chairs by the table, then destroyed the practice dummy. In her mind, the practice dummy had become the Master, a foe she had to defeat. She was deaf to Giles' calls of 'that's enough', until the wooden dummy splintered and broke.

"Uh, safe to say you've stayed in shape." Giles said gently, watching her carefully.

Buffy was breathing hard. She bunched her hair in a fist above her head to pull it off her neck and panted out, "I'm ready. Whatever they've got coming next, I'm ready. Yeah."

******

The next day in the student lounge, Buffy was sitting on a couch, thinking hard. She was so lost in her own little world, that she didn't hear Willow and Xander come up the stairs until Xander basically screamed her name,

"Fine! I'm fine." She said, jerking back to the present.

"Good! It's good that you're fine."

Xander sat next to her, and Willow on a couch opposite them.

"What were you thinking about?" Willow asked, pulling an apple from her bag.

"Nothing."

"Oh, c'mon, you can tell us. We're your bosom friends! The friends of your bosom!" Xander enthused, also pulling a snack out – his a power bar.

"Xander." Willow chided. Then they frowned simultaneously at their snacks and switched, tossing them to each other over the table between the two couches.

"I wasn't thinking anything, really." Buffy insisted.

'What'd you do last night?"

"Mm. Slept. I had weird dreams."

"Dreams are meaningful."

"Tsh! Tell me about it." Willow agreed. "The other night I dreamt that Xander... Uh, I-it wasn't Xander. I-in fact it wasn't me. It was a friend's dream, and she doesn't remember it."

Buffy managed a weak smile. "I bet she doesn't."

"Buffy!"

Buffy looked up, and saw Giles walking towards them. Seeing the look on his face, she frowned and stood up.

"Giles! What is it? You look worried."

"This vampire activity, I think I know what they're up to."

Buffy smiled slightly, relieved that he was okay. "Well, we'll deal with it." _She'd _deal with it. Giles didn't have to worry. He would be in no danger.

"I hope it's that simple." Giles mused.

"It is not to worry. Trust me."

"Oh, I don't know. I mean," He chuckled, a strange, very not-Giles sound. "I've killed you once, it shouldn't be too difficult to do it again."

She froze. "What?"

Giles took a hard backhand swing at her face, knocking her down onto the table between the two couches. Then he climbed over and began to choke her. As she gasped for air, she looked over his shoulder and saw Xander and Willow smiling absently at each other as they munched their snacks, paying the two on the table no attention.

_No. _This was not her Giles. He would never, ever hurt her like this. Reaching up, Buffy grabbed at the mask over Giles' face, pulling it off to reveal the face of the Master.

Buffy awoke with a scream.

******

That night at the Bronze, Cibi Matto was playing "Spoon", and Willow and Xander were sitting together at a table, Willow eating from a cup of ice cream.

"I just think something's up is all." Willow said.

"Willow, you're paranoid." Xander insisted. He appeared to be distracted, and was eyeing the people packed into the Bronze.

"Buffy's never acted like this before. Ever since she got back she's... different."

_Can't find a spoon..._

"Buffy's always been different."

"She's never been _mean_."

_...that we have had_

He exhaled and looked around again. "Any sign of her? She said she was coming."

_The sugar cubes..._

Willow frowned. Maybe it had been a mistake to mention Buffy. "No. The band's cool, though."

"Yeah, cool."

_...can melt our mouth / We belong, yes, to-to-together_

Remembering the other day, Willow dipped her nose into her ice cream and smiled, trying to get Xander's attention.

_We belong, yes, to-to-together / We belong, yes, to-to-together_

Xander shot her a careless glance. "You got somethin' on your nose."

_We belong, yes, to-to-together / We belong, yes, to-to-together_

Willow's smile faded, and she wiped the ice cream away with a napkin.

_We belong, yes, to-to-together_

"Sugar Water" started playing.

_The velocity of time... turns her voice into... sugar water_

Buffy walked into the Bronze, but Angel noticed her before Xander could.

"Hi." Buffy said as Angel walked over.

"Hi."

"So, is there danger at the Bronze?" She asked sarcastically. "Should I beware?"

"I can't help thinking I've done something to make you angry." Angel murmured sadly, "And that bothers me more than I'd like."

"I'm not angry. I don't know where that comes from."

"What are you afraid of? Me? Us?"

Us? Where had that come from? Admittedly, they had shared that kiss… and Buffy knew that Angel liked her as far more then friends… but she was not sure if there was an "us". And at the moment she was in no mood to think about it. She needed to forget about vampires for a while, and Angel was not helping. The exact opposite in fact.

"Could you contemplate getting over yourself for a second?" She snapped, "There's no 'us'. Look, Angel, I'm sorry if I was supposed to spend the summer mooning over you, but I didn't. I moved on. To the living."

_I'm on a concrete way / The wind is blowing..._

Buffy left Angel staring after her and walked over to Willow and Xander's table. "Hey!"

"Hi."

"Hey."

…_to the north-northwest_

"What's wrong with Angel?" Willow asked.

"Beats me."

_It smells like sands of the southern island_

Because she could still feel the vampire's gaze on her back, Buffy turned to Xander. "Let's dance." She pulled at his shirt insistently.

"Ooo-kay." Buffy pulled him by his shirt towards the dance floor.

_When a black cat crosses my path_

Buffy and Xander began to slow dance, Buffy purposefully making the dance sensual. She knew, somewhere in her mind, that she was being irrational and cruel, but she needed to _forget_. She didn't want to be thinking at all.

_A woman in the moon is singing to the earth / A woman in the _

_moon is singing to the earth / La la la, la la la la la la / La la la, _

_la la la la la la_

Buffy turned her back against Xander and pulled his arms around her waist, moving against him.

_La la la, la la la la la la / La la la, la la la la la la_

She reached up and stroked his face, aware of Angel's angry glare and Willow's shocked expression.

_I'm riding on a camel that has big eyes / The buildings are changing into coconut trees / Little by little…_

_When a black cat...crosses my path_

_A woman in the moon is singing to the earth_

Suddenly, without warning, she moved away, leaving a stunned Xander on the dance floor.

_A woman in the moon is singing to the earth._

Buffy walked over to the table and grabbed her jacket, then made her way out of the Bronze.

_La la la, la la la la la la_ _La la la, la la la la la la_

******

Giles frowned at Willow. "Possessed?"

The three of them – Xander, Willow and Giles – were sitting at a table in the student lounge together, discussing Buffy.

"That's the only explanation that makes any sense. I mean, you should've seen her last night. That wasn't Buffy." Willow said.

"Are we overlooking the idea that she may be very attracted to me?" Xander asked hopefully. When they shot him looks, he sighed. "She's possessed."

"Possessed by what?"

"Aaaaa possessing thing!" Willow suggested.

Giles rolled his eyes and replied sarcastically. "Well, that narrows it down."

He tried a sip of the soda he had just bought and winced. It was so _sweet_!

"Well, you're the expert." Xander shrugged, then brightened. "Hey, maybe when the Master killed her some... mystical bad guy transference thing happened."

"That's what it was!" Willow agreed. "I mean, why else would she be acting like such a b-i-t-c-h?"

"Willow, I think we're all a little too old to be spelling things out." Giles told her.

Xander was frowning. "A bitca?"

Not at all surprised that Xander hadn't understood, Giles nodded. "Yes." Then he turned back to Willow. "I suggest that, uh, the explanation for her behavior may be something more, more mundane."

The bell rang, but Giles continued.

"She may simply have what you Americans refer to as Issues. Uh, her experience with the Master must have been extremely traumatic. Well, she was, for at least a few minutes, technically dead. I-I don't think she's dealt with that on a conscious level. She's convinced herself that she's invulnerable... for the very reason that she feels..."

Xander interrupted, as he noticed Buffy standing in the doorway. "That's a very interesting point about trout, you just brought up now."

"Trout?" Then Giles noticed Buffy too. "Trout! Yes, trout, i-is a fish. Good morning. Did you sleep well?"

"Like a rock. Master's gone."

"I'm sorry?" He frowned, looking at her eyes. She was trying to look angry, and very obviously _was _angry, but more then that, she was terrified. Giles had never seen so much fear in the Slayer's eyes.

"The Master. I went by his grave last night, and they have a vacancy."

"Good God!" Giles murmured.

"What would somebody want with Master bones?"

"A trophy, a horrible conversation piece?"

"They're gonna bring him back." Buffy said, her voice trembling and her eyes suspiciously bright. "They're gonna bring the Master back to life, and I seem to recall _you _telling me he was history."

"Buffy, I-I-I've never heard of a-a revivification ritual being successful."

"But you've heard of them? Thanks for the warning."

Giles could not bring himself to be annoyed with Buffy. She had every reason to be angry with him, and every reason to be terrified. He should have realized before why Buffy was acting so strangely. He should have taken care of her, and not assumed that she would be just be _okay_ after dying and coming back to life. He should have been more careful with the Master. Willow however, had no such reservations.

"Well, Buffy, Giles did bury him and..."

"Look, this is Slayer stuff, okay?" Buffy snapped, her terror unleashing into anger at her friends. "Could we have just a little less from the civilians, please?"

"Okay, that's just about enough!" Xander cried.

Buffy shot Xander a dangerous look, but before she could do or say anything else that she would regret later, Snyder interrupted, popping up out of nowhere,

"I believe some of us have class? And some of us have jobs."

"Y-yes, well, I'll, uh, I'll see you all, uh, in the library later. We'll, we'll continue this discussion."

"About trout." Willow agreed.

Giles and Snyder watched Buffy, Willow and Xander walk away.

"There're some things I can just smell. It's like a sixth sense." Snyder said.

Giles sighed. "No, actually that would be one of the five."

"That Summers girl. I smell trouble. I smell expulsion, and just the faintest aroma of jail."

Giles scowled at him. "Well, before you throw away the key, you might consider giving her the benefit of the doubt. She may surprise you."

"You really have faith in those kids, don't you?"

"Yes, I do."

Snyder sniffed and turned away. "Weird."

*******

"Alright, alright, I-I-I've got something." Buffy, Willow, Xander and Giles were in the library after school, and Giles had just discovered something in one of his books. "It's Latin, so bear

with me. Uh, to revive the vampire they need his bones, uh... w-which they have, and, um, the blood... this is very unclear, of the closest person... uh, someone connected to the vampire."

"That'd be me." Buffy said.

"Perhaps."

"We were close." Buffy insisted. "We killed each other. It really promotes togetherness."

"Well, is there anything on when the ceremony might take..."

A rock suddenly crashed through the window, interrupting Xander mid-sentence."Whoa!"

Buffy caught the rock and unfolded the note from the rock. It was tied on with a bracelet.

"This is Cordelia's." Buffy said, and then read the note. "'Come to the Bronze before it opens, or we make her a meal.'"

"They're gonna cook her dinner?" Xander cried. When everyone looked at him, he sighed. "I'll pretend I didn't say that."

"What do we do?"

"I go to the Bronze and save the day." Buffy said, letting out a heavy breath.

"I don't like this." Xander protested.

"Nor I!" Giles agreed.

Buffy turned back. Did they really think that she would let them come? That she would endanger them like that? She scowled to herself. Of course they did. She had done it before, hadn't she? "Yeah? Well, you guys aren't going."

"What do you mean?"

"I can't do it anymore. I can't look after the three of you guys while I'm fighting."

"Well, what about the rest of the note?" Willow demanded.

"What rest of the note?"

"The part that says, 'P.S. This is a trap'?"

"You'll be playing straight into their hands." Giles said, taking off his glasses and rubbing at them absently.

"I can handle this."

"Stop saying that!" Willow cried, "God, what's wrong with you?"

"Cordelia may be dead." Xander added.

"This is my fight." Buffy left before they could argue anymore, and the three in the library just watched her go with angry, confused expressions.

*******

Close to an hour later, Willow spoke up. "I still think we should've gone with her."

"Buffy's about to lose it. I think we should be trying to reach minimum safe distance."

"Xander, you know it's a trap!"

Giles looked up from his book. "Ah! Ah, ah, ah! Uh, uh, the Latin is, is translated from the

Sumerian, a-a-and rather badly. Closest to the Master actually translates as 'nearest'. Physically. The, the, the person or persons who were with him... when he... " He trailed off, looking up. "It is a trap…. It just isn't for her."

Several vampires had appeared on the level above them, grinning down at them.

******

Meanwhile, at the Bronze, Buffy had found a vampire dressed as Cordelia, and had realized this was a trap. Angel had showed up to 'help' her, but she didn't have time to deal with him at the moment. The second she realized Giles and her friends were in danger, she bound the vampire's wrists and pushed in towards Angel.

"Watch her. Don't kill her unless you have to."

"Buffy! What's goin' on?" Angel demanded.

"I'll be back."

She ran out of the Bronze and to the school, not slowing down for a second until she burst into the library. She stumbled to a halt once inside though, as she saw the place was in shambles. The centre table had been tilted over to the side, and someone was trying to use it to haul themselves to their feet.

_Giles. _

Buffy rushed over to help him up, but he shook her off. As much as Giles loved her, he was so furious with her now that he could barely speak.

"What happened?" She asked.

"Vampires. The ones you could handle yourself."

"Where are the others?"

"I don't know." He turned away from her. "I don't know what your problem is, Buffy. But as of right now, I don't care. You could have stopped this. You should have stopped this. You are the _slayer._"

Buffy glanced away from him. "We, we just have to think. Where would they have taken them? Why did they take them and not you?"

"They needed people who were close to the master. Physically close."

"The ones who were with the Master when he died."

"Xander, Willow, Cordelia..."

"Ms. Calendar."

Giles sighed. "The odds are that they have all of them by now."

"We need to find out where."

"How?"

*****

"One more time: where are they?"

Buffy threw the female vampire down to the ground angrily. They were back at the Bronze, and Buffy was attempting to get information from the vamp who had pretended to be Cordelia.

"You're too late. Your friends are dead."

Buffy picked her up. "Tell me where they are!"

The female only laughed. "What are you gonna do? Kill me?"

Buffy tossed her onto the pool table.

"As a matter of fact...Yes. But since I'm not gonna kill you any time soon, the question becomes..."

She pulled off the silver cross from around her neck and dropped it into the vampire's mouth, covering it with her hands.

"How are we gonna pass the time till then?"

The cross began to burn the vampire's mouth, and she twisted her head in an attempt to get away. Eventually, Buffy took it out.

"So. One more time."

******

Inside an old abandoned warehouse, Collin, the Anointed, carries a black case past the Master's skeleton, which is laid out on a table. Another vampire takes it from him.

"Begin." The vampire said.

Yet another vampire began to pull on a chain, and Willow, Xander, Cordelia and Jenny and yanked along a conveyer to hang, upside down and unconscious, over the bones of the Master.

"Behold, these four mortals."

Buffy entered the warehouse through a side door, Angel and Giles beside her.

"Witnesses to our Master's wretched demise. They will breathe their last this night. The blood that pours from their throats will bring NEW LIFE to the old one. We gather for his resurrection. For the dawn of this new hell."

"Buffy!" Buffy faced Giles. "We have to do something." Giles insisted. "Now."

"You two get the others out of here." Buffy instructed.

Angel nodded. "We need you to distract the vampires."

"Right."

Giles placed a hand on her shoulder. "What are you going to do?"

"I'm gonna kill them all." She pulled away from him. "That oughta distract them."

The first vampire was now holding a long, curved knife. "For the old one. For his pain. For the dark."

"For the dark!" The other vampires chimed in.

The vampire kissed the blade, then looked over in disbelief as one of his followers turned to dust and Buffy appeared in the circle, holding a stake. He roared in fury, and three of the vampires began to attack Buffy. Meanwhile Giles and Angel began to climb the ladder to get the others down.

The first vampire ushered Collin out of the warehouse and to safety, then returned to see Giles and Angel pulling on the chain.

"The sacrifices! Stop them!"

A vampire responded and ran up the ladder as Buffy continues to fight below. Buffy executed a flip over a bunch of wooden boxes, grabbed one and smashed it over a vampire's head. She kicked another in the face, and was tackled from the side.

Above, Giles pulled the others off the conveyer and laid them on the floor, attempting to tend to them and wake them. Before any regained consciousness, however, the vampire made it up to the platform and growled dangerously at them. Angel instantly turned, put on his vampire face, and attacked the other vampire.

Down below, a vampire was on top of Buffy, trying to bite her. Buffy wasted no time in grabbing a piece of splintered wood and jabbing it into the vampire's back. He turned into ash, covering her with it. Instantly, another vampire rushed to attack her.

Above, Xander gained consciousness. "Are you alright?" He asked Jenny, who was closest to him.

"Yeah, I'm okay."

"Where's Buffy?"

"Uh, she's working out her issues."

Buffy is still fighting a vampire below. Angel's attacker tries to stake him, but Angel stops him and stakes the other vampire instead. Buffy kicked her vampire into a storage rack, and both vampire and rack crashed to the ground. Before anything else can happen, the first vampire showed up again, now carrying a large sledgehammer.

"ENOUGH!"

Buffy turned to look at him. The vampire she just kicked stands.

"Your day is done, girl." The first vampire snarled. "I'll grind you into a *sticky* paste, and hear you beg before I smash in your face."

Buffy just looked at him with shimmering eyes. "So, are you gonna kill me or are we just making small talk?"

The vampire raised the sledgehammer and ran at Buffy, who was now standing in the centre of the room. On the other side of her, the other vampire rushed at her as well. Calmly, Buffy looked at the tall wooden torch in front of her, and pulled it off, turning it around in her hands. At the last second, she jabbed it back and forth, stabbing the second vampire with the pointed end and killing him, and setting the first vampire on fire. Flames engulf him and he burns to ash, dropping the hammer.

For a moment there is only silence.

"It's over." Willow whispered.

"No, it's not." Xander disagreed.

Giles, standing only a few feet from Buffy, called her name quietly and took a step forward, but he knew that Buffy could neither see or hear him. Her eyes were bright as she bent to pick up the hammer, and walked over to the Master's skeleton. Then she snapped and began to slam the hammer into the Master's bones, whaling on the skeleton until there is nothing left to smash.

Giles came up behind her and watched her until she finally stepped back and dropped the hammer. When Buffy burst into tears, Giles whispered, "It's okay… It's okay…"

Buffy instantly turned to him, and began to cry into his shoulder. As his own eyes welled with tears, Giles held her close to him, his arms gentle, and swore to himself that he would never, ever let her go.

******

"I don't think I can face them."

Buffy and Giles were walking along outside the school, side by side.

Giles did not respond at first. He was looking at her face. Although she seemed worried, there was still serenity, a basic happiness about her now that the master truly was gone. It pleased him to see her as herself again. "Hmm? Of course, you can."

"I can't! What am I supposed say? 'Sorry I almost got your throat slit. What's the homework?'"

"Punishing yourself like this is pointless." And it bothered him. He had forgiven her, and he knew her friends had too. She just needed to forgive herself.

"It's entirely pointy. I was a moron. I put my best friends in mortal danger on the second day of school."

"What are you gonna do? Crawl inside a cave for the rest of your life?"

Buffy looked thoughtful. "Would it have cable?"

Giles smiled slightly. "Buffy, you acted wrongly, I admit that. But believe me that was hardly the, the worst mistake you'll ever make." Then he frowned. "Uh, that wasn't quite as comforting as it was meant to be."

She smiled at him anyway, eyes gentle. "Well, points for effort." The bell rang and she sighed, "See you."

Buffy entered the classroom, but stopped nervously when she saw Willow and Xander. They look up at her briefly, then away.

Trying to gather her courage, Buffy entered the room and walked over to an empty desk near Willow.

"Hey Buffy." Willow said.

"Hey."

"We saved you a seat."

Buffy looked at her friends carefully and then cautiously sat down in the seat.

"There's a rumor going around that, uh, Mr. Cox is the most boring teacher in the entire world." Xander said. "Like, I think he won a belt or something.

"Yes." Buffy was smiling now. Giles had been right. Her friends, by some miracle, had forgiven her.

"Well, I hear he nods off a lot. So that's a plus."

"So, we Bronzin' it tonight?"

"Wednesday, it's kinda beat."

"Well, we could grind our enemies into talcum powder with a sledgehammer, but, gosh, we did that last night."

Buffy stiffened, but then realized her friends were still smiling at her. She grinned back.

"Hey, I got a plan: how 'bout miniature golf."

"There's no course here."

"Okay, uh, miniature tennis! A very tiny form of tennis that we could invent..."

*******

OKAY that's the end of the first episode of season 2. I know there wasn't a whole lot of Giles POV in this chapter, and a lot of switching, but I felt this episode needed to be included. Firstly because we needed some kind of closure on the Buffy/Master thing, and secondly because Giles needed to comfort Buffy after her destruction of the Master. Because Giles was not physically close to the master when he died however (if you remember, he was with Buffy), he could not be kidnapped. Anyway, hopefully I will have the next chapter up soon, It depends on when I get access to a computer again. Please review ^ ^


	9. Chapter 9

My sister is amazing! ^ ^ My computer still doesn't work, but she's letting me use hers again. So you have her to thank for the next episode. Here's, "School Hard".

******

_In every generation there is a Chosen One. She alone will stand against the vampires, the demons and the forces of darkness. She is the Slayer._

Giles was walking with Jenny Calendar down the halls of Sunnydale high. Ever since they had returned to school for yet another year of teaching, Jenny had grown more and more attached to him, despite his best attempts to show her he wasn't in the least interested. She was like a leech. Or a barnacle glued onto a ship. And she wouldn't let _go. _

Giles' mind was already only half on the conversation when he spotted Buffy in the student lounge of the school and slowed to a stop. Jenny moved in front of him to continue their conversation, but she hadn't yet noticed the girl, and Giles could still see her over the woman's shoulder.

"I can't believe I'm in trouble _again_." Buffy was muttering to Willow, who was, along with Xander, helping her paint a banner of some kind. "I mean, I'm the slayer. At least I have an excuse. What's Shelia's? Then she doesn't even show _up_..."

"Sheila's a no-show?" Willow mused, "She goes to this really rank bar. The Fish Tank? Sometimes they have raids and other stuff that can make you tardy."

"D'you think you can help me cram some French tonight?" Buffy asked, moving onto other topics. "I don't want Mr. DeJean telling my mother I'm an imbecile."

"I thought we were going to the Bronze tonight. 'Cause of how you thought Angel might show?"

Giles' frowned darkly. Angel again. What on earth did Buffy see in that brooding, demonic menace?

"If he does he'll meet some other nice girl." Xander said hurriedly, "Studying comes first."

Giles silently agreed, even though he knew Xander was only saying that because he was almost as jealous of Angel as Giles was.

"We're going to the Bronze." Buffy insisted. "I can study and party and do Parent-Teacher night and make my mother proud as long as I don't have to..."

Giles decided this was the perfect opportunity to intervene. He had needed to tell her about the newest vampire situation anyway, as soon as he told her she would see that she did _not _have time to go to the Bronze and see Angel.

"Buffy!" He called out, walking past Jenny towards them. Jenny trailed after.

"...fight vampires." Buffy finished morosely.

Jenny was still arguing with him over the vampire situation. It turned out that Jenny, for all her techno pagan knowledge, was more of a bother then an actual help – he spent more time arguing with her and getting information he already knew then learning anything of value.

"There is nothing in the chronicles about a-an extraneous lunar cycle." He muttered.

"The Order never accurately calculated the Mesopotamian Calendar. Rupert, you have _got_ to read something that was published after 1066."

"Very funny."

"What's the up, guys?" Xander asked.

"W-um, Ms. Calendar has been researching, well, uh, surfing on her computer, a-and she's... Well, according to her calculations, this Saturday is the night of St. Vigeous." Of course, he had already known about that for about two weeks, but she needed some credit for _something_. As long as she felt useful she wouldn't go off slurting the Slayer's secrets to the entire internet community.

"Let me guess: he didn't make balloon animals." Buffy remarked.

"No, he led a crusade, of, of, uh, vampires. They swept through Edessa, Harran, and points east." Giles explained.

Jenny chimed in, "And they didn't leave much behind."

"Well, if I survive Parent-Teacher night tomorrow, I'll see what I can do about Saturday."

Giles frown returned. "You're being a tad flip, don't you think? This is serious."

"And getting kicked out of school is laughs aplenty?"

Yes, because clearly _school_ was all she was worried about. His voice got snappish as he said, "You know what happens when you, you let your life interfere with your slaying."

"Okay, well, if my slaying doesn't get me expelled, then I promise my banner making won't get me killed, okay? Just please let me get through this week."

"This Saturday's going to need a great deal of preparation." Giles argued.

"Well, we'll help." Willow said.

"Yeah, I'll whittle stakes." Xander agreed.

"A-and I can research stuff."

"And while I'm whittling, I plan to whistle a jaunty tune."

Giles sighed and looked at the Slayer sadly. Why could she never understand? He wished that her life could be different, but since neither could do anything about it, she needed to start taking the necessary responsibility. "Yes, your help will be greatly appreciated, but when it comes to battle, Buffy must fight alone. You are, after all, the Slay..." Glancing away from Buffy, he saw Snyder coming towards them. "...slay-ve. Slaves. You're, you're all slaves to the, uh, television."

"Yes." Jenny agreed, probably just for the sake of agreeing with Giles.

"Young people nowadays. Shall we go?"

"Mm, let's."

They walked away.

As soon as Giles got back to his library –alone, thankfully, as Jenny had a class – he pulled out his books about the night of St. Vigeous. This night could be seriously dangerous for all of them, even Buffy, and Giles could not help but feel he would have to be part of the fighting once more. One of these days he was going to have to have a serious talk with that girl. Even though she was not the Slayer of his dreams, she had turned out to be an amazing fighter, with a strong and caring heart and a quick mind. She _was _his perfect slayer, he just wished she could put more of herself into the job and stop resenting it so much.

In short, Buffy needed to stop blaming herself for all the problems her slaying gig caused in her life. It was not truly her fault. Certainly, her methods were a little unorthodox, but she got the job done, and she could not be faulted for side affects if lives were on the line. She was doing much better then she had in LA, and she and her mother were both making lives for themselves here. Buffy knew by now that it was not her fault that her parents had split. He just didn't understand what further reservations she could have about accepting her duty fully.

Giles started when he realized that he had been so lost in thought that he had been standing absently in the middle of the library holding the stack of books for the past ten minutes. He rolled his eyes and set to work.

*****

A few hours later, Giles blinked in confusion when the words on the page in front of him started to blur and swim. Was he really that tired? Glancing at the clock, he confirmed that it was not nearly late enough to be unable to read. With a sigh he stood to make himself some tea. Maybe the caffeine would help him.

He was already at the sink in the back filling the kettle before the dizziness hit him and his sight began to go completely black. A vision? He had not had one in a while, but he recognized the symptoms. How could Buffy be in danger? Leaning back against the counter he watched as the view of the office faded around him and the image rose in his mind.

"_Guys, I'm all alone out there. Somebody has to dance with me." _

_Xander was walking from the dance floor at the Bronze to were Buffy and Willow were sitting at the table, bent over a textbook. Angel, thankfully, was nowhere in sight. _

"_Well, we are studying." Willow said disapprovingly. _

"_C'mon, one dance. You've been studying nearly twelve minutes." _

_Buffy rolled her eyes and hopped off the chair. "No wonder my brain's fried." _

_Willow tried to protest, but Buffy and Xander hauled her off towards the dance floor. _

"_Come on." _

_Giles noticed – although the three teenagers didn't – when a peroxide blonde man walked up to their table and began to watch them dance. Giles frowned at him suspiciously. The man walked to the edge of the dance floor, and seemed to be staring rather intently at the Slayer. He lurked over to another man standing at the bar and whispered something in his ear. When the second man left the Bronze, the blonde ran back to the dance floor and spoke loudly. _

"_Where's the phone? I need to call the police. There's some big guy out there trying to bite somebody." _

_Buffy whirled around instantly, halting mid-dance, and took off from the Bronze. The blonde watched her go with a satisfied smile. _

A trap, _Giles thought. _Whoever this man is, he's no good.

_Outside in the alley behind the Bronze, the man from the bar had found a young woman, who was trembling, terrified, as the man leaned in to bite her neck. Before he can drink, Buffy grabbed him from behind and pulled him off. _

"_Slayer!" The vampire snarled. _

"_Slayee!" Buffy retorts. _

_She executed a perfect roundhouse kick to his face. The vampire merely flinched, however, and swung, starling when Buffy ducked. When Buffy tried to hit him again, he grabbed her arm, swung her, and threw her into a metal garage door. Buffy hit the door hard, but was on her feet a second later. He tried to punch her again, and Buffy ducked again, causing him to smash his fist into the metal door. _

"_Get her out of here!" Buffy called to her friends. _

_Willow pulled the woman away, and Buffy begins to punch the vampire repeatedly. _

"_And a stake would be nice!" _

_Giles watched as Xander runs inside again, and then noticed the blonde again. He was standing a short distance away, watching Buffy fight with an amused and slightly thoughtful expression on his face. _

_Buffy punched the vampire a final time in the face, and once more in the chest before he got loose and punched her in return. She fell to the ground, stunned, and the vampire leaned over her. _

"_I don't need to wait for St. Vigeous." He snarled. "You're mine." _

_Before he could bite her, before Giles could even begin to panic, Buffy kicked the vampire in the face. _

"_Spike!" The vampire cried, "Give me a hand!" _

_Buffy looked over and finally spotted the blonde as Xander arrived with the stake. _

"_Buffy!" _

_She turned again and caught the stake that the boy threw, instantly plunging it into the vampire. He crumbled to ask and Buffy looked again at Spike, who was walking towards her. _

"_Nice work, love." The blonde congratulates her. _

"_Who are you?" Buffy asked. _

"_You'll find out on Saturday." _

"_What happens on Saturday?" _

_Spike smirks. "I kill you." _

_Buffy can only watch, stunned, as the blonde leaves. _

Coming out of the vision, Giles swore darkly, and then passed a trembling hand over his eyes before returning to his work. Once again, he had to find a way to keep Buffy safe.

******

Later in the library, Willow, Xander and Buffy had returned from the Bronze. Willow and Xander were crowded around the books with Jenny.

"Spike." Giles mused from where he was standing with Buffy. "That's what the other vampire called him? That's a little unorthodox, isn't it?"

"Maybe he's reformed." Buffy suggested with a small smile. Giles could tell, however, that she was finally worried about Saturday.

"Perhaps he went by another name in... times past." He amended.

Jenny butted in on their conversation. "Well, whoever he is, we'll need all the help we can get come this Saturday."

"So, this night of St. Vigeous deal." Xander said, "If they're gonna attack in force, aren't we thinkin' vacation?"

"We can't run, that would be wrong…" Willow hesitated, "Could we hide? I mean, if that Spike guy is leading the attack…" She shuddered.

"Well, he can't be any worse than any other creature you've faced."

"He's worse."

Everyone turned to see Angel now standing in the library. Giles scowled when Buffy's face lit up.

"Once he starts something he doesn't stop until everything in his path is dead." Angel continued cheerfully.

"Hmm. So, he's thorough, goal-oriented." Xander surmised.

"We were at the Bronze before." Buffy said, "Thought you said you might show."

"You said you weren't sure if you were going." Angel said.

Even Giles rolled his eyes at that one. The man was so oblivious.

"I was being cool. C'mon, you've been dating for, what, like, two hundred years? You don't know what a girl means when she says maybe she'll show?"

"Wow, two centuries of dating. If you only had two a year, that's still, like, four hundred…" Buffy gave her a look. "dates with

four hundred different..." Willow gulped and commented on the first thing her eyes fell on. "Why do they call it a mace?"

"Uh, we do have slightly more urgent matters to discuss." Giles reminded them, glaring daggers at Angel. Angel looked surprised, then glanced at Buffy and smirked.

"Yeah, like keeping my mom away from Principal Snyder tomorrow night?" Buffy suggested, who hadn't noticed the exchange.

"And not dying Saturday." Jenny commented, stating the obvious.

"Angel, do you know if this Spike fellow goes under any other name?"

They all glanced towards Angel, but he was gone. The only sign that he had been there were the library doors, which were swinging ever so slightly.

"Okay, that's it. I'm puttin' a collar with a little bell on that guy." Xander muttered,

*****

At school the next day, Friday, Willow was checking the crossbow and Jenny was gathering wood for stakes as Cordelia and Xander whittled away. Buffy was holding a very large knife, but was chopping vegetables as opposed to preparing for the fight.

"For three nights the unholy ones scourge themselves into a fury, um, culminating in a savage attack on the night of St. Vigeous." Giles said.

Xander sighed. "Does anybody remember when Saturday night meant date night?"

"You sure don't." Cordelia told him.

"Ooo! Parents start arriving in an hour. Okay, so, um, banners are in place, the lounge is comfy... What am I forgetting?" Buffy asked.

"Punch?"

"Punch. I need, I need punch!"

"My fingers are cramping." Cordelia complained. "How long have I been doing this?"

"Three minutes." Xander calculated.

"So, can I go now? She doesn't need this many stakes. I mean, if this guy Spike is as mean as you all said, it should be over pretty quickly." When Buffy glanced over at her, she said, "We're still all rooting for you on Saturday. I'd be there for you myself if I didn't have a leg wax."

Buffy rolled her eyes. "You guys hold down the fort. I'm punch bound."

The second she left, Xander and Cordelia both reached for veggies. Buffy stuck her head in again.

"No!"

******

Later that evening, when Willow and Buffy were dealing with Buffy's mom and Cordelia had run out to "help" (AKA escape the work), Giles and Jenny were researching as Xander continued to whittle.

"Oh, there you are." Giles said suddenly.

"There who is?" Jenny asked.

"Our new friend Spike. He's known as 'William the Bloody'. Earned his nickname by torturing his victims with railroad spikes. Very pleasant. Well, here's some good news: he's barely two hundred. He's not even as old as Angel is." He frowned. "Oh."

"That's a bad look, right?" Xander guessed.

"I think your suggestion of running away this Saturday might've been a good one. Spike has fought two Slayers in the last century, and... he's killed them both."

Giles slammed the book shut and stood, moving away from Jenny and Xander. How could he have let this happen again? He had been angry with Buffy before for ignoring her calling, now he just needed to get her out of here. There was no way that the Slayer could handle this yet.

*****

The cat was out of the bag. As Joyce and Snyder walked towards Willow and Buffy from the direction of Snyder's office, Buffy gulped and the two friends exchanged worried glances. Their silent fear was confirmed when Joyce reached them and snapped,

"In the car, now."

Slowly, reluctantly, Buffy started to follow her mother out of the building. She turned her head once to look at Snyder, who was turning off lights in the building and closing up the school. Snyder turned out the last light, and suddenly, two vampires came crashing through the window. Buffy and Joyce turned as one as several more vampires and entered and the remaining parents and students began to panic.

The vampires stood together, with Spike in front of them.

"What can I say? I couldn't wait."

*****

Giles, Jenny and Xander came running out of the library when they heard commotion outside. Buffy was leading her mother, Snyder, and a few other parents away from the main lobby of the school.

"What the hell...?!" Giles cried.

"Spike and an army! Look out!"

A vampire appeared behind them, causing Jenny to scream.

"Back!" Giles shouted, pushing the others into the library in front of him. Once inside, they held the doors shut as the vampire slammed into it.

"In here! Now!" Buffy was shouting to the parents, leading them into the science classroom. Buffy entered last and closed the door as Snyder and another parent pushed a large cabinet in front of it.

The lights went out.

*****

In the library, Giles tried the phone only to discover it was dead.

"They've cut the phones…Wait a minute. There's an old boarded up-cellar behind the stacks. You can get out that way." He turned to Xander."Find Angel. He knows about Spike. We need him."

"No, I'm not going anywhere until I know that Buffy and Willow are alright." Xander said stubbornly.

As if Giles needed the boy's help to protect Buffy. "No one will be alright unless we get some help!"

Xander left.

Giles stuffed several stakes into his jacket pockets, grabbed a battle-ax from the table and started towards the door.

Jenny protested. "Hey-hey-hey-hey! What are you doing?"

Giles ignored her and began to move their barricade.

"There are at least three vampires in that hall! God only knows how many others in the building!"

Giles frowned at her. "Listen! I am the Watcher! I am responsible for her, and I have, I have to go!"

"Rupert!"

Scowling darkly, he looked at her again.

"Be careful."

He nodded. "Push these back as soon as I..."

Buffy fell through the ceiling, causing Jenny to fall back with a squeak and Giles to raise the axe before he recognized her.

"Buffy! You're all right!"

Buffy smiled at him and nodded.

"How are the others?" Jenny asked.

"Principal Snyder, my mother and four others are locked in the science room across the hall. Willow and Cordelia ran the other way. I don't know if they're... Where's Xander?"

"He got out through the stacks. He's getting Angel."

Jenny began to help Buffy pack a bag full of stakes and other weapons.

"Good. Okay, I'm gonna take the vamps out in the hall. After that you get my mother and the others out the same way."

"Let me help you." Giles insisted, taking a step towards her. This battle was important, dangerous. There was no way she could ask him to let her face this alone.

Buffy faced him, her face solemn, eyes pleading. "Giles, my mother's in that room. If I don't make it out of here, I know you'll make sure she does."

Giles' expression was agonized. The thought of Buffy not making it out was… unimaginably painful. But he could not ignore the look on his Slayer's face. H nodded. "Bloody right, I will. Fair enough. What's your plan?"

"Well, they split up to hold us here, so I'm gonna take 'em one on one. Set 'em up and knock 'em down."

She grabbed a stool and hauled herself through into the ceiling again.

"Watch your back!" Giles warned her, even as he held back the words he really wanted to say.

Buffy looked down at him one last time, however, before she vanished, and he knew he did not have to say the words.

******

Buffy crawled carefully through the ceiling, even as she heard movement in the hall beneath her. She gasped and fell back, however, when a metal pole smashed through the ceiling, almost stabbing her.

She backed up, retraced her steps, and went the other way, crashing through the ceiling once more, this time outside the science room. She turned instantly and staked the vampire trying to break in.

"Buffy! Are you okay?" Her mom called through the door.

"I'm fine, mom."

"Buffy, look, uh, get out of here, okay? We'll be alright!"

Buffy rolled her eyes. "Look, just hang on for one more minute until I tell you to open the door."

She quietly walked around, stake in hand, to see if any other vampires were near. Another vampire stood with his back to her in an adjacent hallway. Before she could do anything, however, she heard a noise behind her and turned to face none other then Sheila.

"Sheila! Where've you been?"

"Sorry I'm late." The girl apologized insincerely. "There's some really weird guys outside."

"Shh! Yeah, I know. They're trying to kill us."

Sheila smiled and picked up an axe. "This should be fun."

Buffy gave her a weird look and turned back to the hall. She was distracted again by the scene she could see past the vampire in front of her. Spike was poking holes into the ceiling with the metal pole, assuming she was still in there. It would have been comic if the situation was not so serious.

Then Angel entered the school, dragging Xander by the neck. Buffy raised her eyebrows. She trusted Angel, but what was he planning to do with the boy? There was no way he could fool William the Bloody. Not if he was all that Angel had said he was. Then Spike saw them too.

"Angelus!"

"Spike!"

"I'll be damned!" The blonde vampire said, before tossing his pole aside to hug Angel.

"I taught you to always guard your perimeter." Angel chided when they stepped back. "Tsk, tsk, tsk. You should have someone out there."

"I did. I'm surrounded by idiots. What's new with you?"

"Everything."

"Yeah. Come up against this Slayer yet?"

Angel shrugged. "She's cute. Not too bright, though. Gave the puppy dog 'I'm all tortured' act. Keeps her off my back when I feed!"

Buffy stifled the urge to laugh. 'I'm all tortured'. Angel had just described his mopey attitude to a T. At least he recognized that part of his personality. She grinned, amused by the exchange.

Spike laughed too. "People still fall for that Anne Rice routine. What a world!"

"I knew you were lying." Xander muttered darkly.

Angel gave him a squeeze to shut him up, even as Buffy looked at Xander in surprise. Was he actually falling for this? Then again, Xander had never liked Angel.

"Undead liar guy."

Angel grabbed Xander by the hair and offered his neck to Spike.

"Wanna bite before we kill her?"

Buffy, still unconcerned, backtracked towards the first vampire she had seen, getting back to business.

"Stay behind me." She told Sheila.

There was a shout from a nearby room, and Buffy realized they were outside of the library.

"Buffy! Look out!" Giles called to her.

She spun around just in time to stop an axe swing from a vamped-out Sheila. She turned and hit Sheila in the jaw with the handle, then swung the axe at the first vampire, who had finally noticed them.

The vampire ducked, and grinned when he saw the axe was buried in the wall. Then the smile faded as he realized Buffy had gotten him in the chest with a stake. As he burst into ashes, Buffy ran back down the hall as she went to the classroom door.

"Mom, now!"

Joyce opened the door. "Okay, come on, let's go!"

Everyone rushed out of the science room and across the hall to the library.

"C'mon! Hurry!" Joyce urged the others.

"Get them out!" Buffy called to Giles. He met her eyes and nodded steadily, though his eyes were concerned.

"You're coming too!" Joyce commanded.

"In a minute! Go!"

She ignored her mother's shout, and ran back towards the hall to see the exchange between Angel and Spike.

"Yeah. " Spike was saying. "Time was you would've taken her out in a heartbeat. Now look at you. I bet this, uh, tortured thing is an act, right? You're not... housebroken?"

"I saw her kill the Master." Angel snarled. "Hey, you think you can take her alone? Be my guest. I'll just feed and run." He bent over Xander's neck.

Spike held up his hand. "Don't be silly! We're all friends. We'll do it together. Let's drink to it."

They both lean in, but still Buffy just watched dispassionately until Spike punched Angel in the face. Then she rolled her eyes. Figured.

"You think you can fool me?!" Spike demanded, "You were my sire, man! You were my... Yoda!"

"Things change." Angel snarled.

"Not us! Not demons! Man, I can't believe this. You Uncle Tom!" He grabbed his pole. "Come on, people! This isn't a spectator sport!"

The vampires roared as one and chased Angel and Xander from the building. _Load of help they were_. Buffy thought to herself, before moving forward towards Spike.

"Fe, fi, fo fum. I smell the blood of a nice ripe…" Spike turned to face Buffy. "girl."

Buffy hoisted the axe. "Do we really need weapons for this?"

"I just like them. They make me feel all manly."

He dropped the pole and started towards her. She dropped the axe and watched him.

"The last Slayer I killed... she begged for her life."

Buffy moved closer and they circled each other.

"You don't strike me as the begging kind." Spike mused.

Buffy remained outwardly unconcerned. "You shouldn'ta come here."

"No. I've messed up your doilies and stuff." Spike drawled, waving his hand. "But I just got so _bored_." He smirked. "I'll tell you what. As a personal favor from me to you I'll make it quick. It won't hurt a bit."

"No, Spike." Buffy disagreed. "It's gonna hurt a lot."

Unseen by the vampire or slayer, as they started to fight, Giles ran into the entrance of the large room. Joyce was safely outside of the school, guarded by Jenny, who was under threat of death not to let the woman return to the school in search of her daughter.

Giles, however, was an entirely different matter. He didn't intervene in the fight yet – after all, Buffy was so far handing everything fine – but watched with deceptively calm hazel eyes.

Spike and Buffy exchanged several blows before Spike grabbed her and threw her into the wall.

On her feet again, Buffy ducked a punch and gave four of her own to Spike before he grabbed her and shoved her into the wall again. She slid down just in time to avoid another punch, and Spike's fist went through the wall. She came up behind him and kicked him in the neck.

"Now, that hurt!" The vampire snarled, before yanking his hand out of the wall, his hand wrapped around a metal bar he had found in the foundation.

He smacked it into Buffy's face, and she flew back and landed on the floor, stunned.

"But not as much as this will."

He stood over her and wielded the piece of metal. But before he could do anything, something heavy hit him in the back of the head, and he crumpled to the floor next to Buffy. The Slayer scrambled away from him, and they both looked up. Giles stood above Spike, wielding the axe, his expression fierce.

"You get the hell away from her!"

Spike snarled as Buffy scrambled to stand beside her rescuer, then turned and left the lounge, diving through the broken window.

Giles breathed out and dropped the axe. "Nobody lays a hand on my Slayer."

She turned and hugged him. Giles looked shocked for a minute and then hesitantly wrapped his arms around her.

"Thank you." She whispered.

Giles only smiled in her hair and held her closer.

*****

Giles and Buffy walked out of the building together, their arms around each other. Their arms dropped quickly, however, when they saw Jenny and Joyce standing together at the edge of the lawn. The two females spotted them and hurried over. As Joyce hugged Buffy, Jenny said,

"Well, another wonderful fun-filled evening."

"Uh, yes. You know, um, I will understand if you decide to start avoiding me." Giles said, his voice hopeful.

Jenny took Giles' arm and dragged him off, and Giles shot Buffy a regretful look over his shoulder. She only smirked, finding his predicament amusing. Giles sighed and tried to pay attention to the happily chattering Jenny.

Buffy turned to her mother. "So, what did you and Principal Snyder talk about anyway?"

"Principal Snyder said you were a troublemaker."

Buffy looked away from her mother.

"And I could care less."

She looked back, eyes wide.

"I have a daughter who can take care of herself. Who's brave and resourceful and thinks of others in a crisis. No matter who you hangout with or what dumb teenage stuff you think you need to do, I'm gonna sleep better knowing all that."

Buffy looked teary for a moment, and then smirked. "About how long till this wears off and you start ragging on me again?"

"Oh, at least a week and a half."

"Very cool!"

****

The sun was coming up around the warehouse where Spike, Drusilla, the anointed and several of the anointed followers were hiding.

"Spike, did she hurt you?" Drusilla crooned.

"It was close, baby, but..."

"Oh, come here."

Drusilla began to stroke his face.

"A Slayer with family and friends." Spike snarled. "That sure as hell wasn't in the brochure."

"You'll kill her, and then we'll have a nice celebration."

"Yeah, a party."

"Yeah. With streamers... and songs."

Spike lifted his head and looked towards Collin. "How's the annoying one?"

"He doesn't wanna play."

"Figures. Well, suppose I better go make nice."

Spike walked over to Collin and forced himself to kneel.

"You failed." Collin said.

"I, uh... I offer penance."

Another vampire gasped, outraged. "Penance?! You should lay down your life! Our numbers are depleted, the feast of St. Vigeous has been _ruined _by your impatience!"

"I was rash, and if I had to do it all over again..." Spike dropped the act and laughed. "Who am I kidding?" He stood and grabbed Collin. "I would do it exactly the same, only I'd do this..."

"No!" Collin squealed.

"...first!" Spike finished.

He carried Collin over to the cage in the centre of the room, battling off the vampire that tried to stop him.

"From now on, we're gonna have a little less ritual...and a little more fun around here."

He pulled the cage up into the sunlight steaming into the window. As Collin began to scream, Drusilla smiled at him, and they left together, holding hands.

"Let's see what's on TV."

*****

Okay that's the end… there wasn't a lot of Giles in this one, but I hope the scene at the end made up for it ^ ^. This is episode 3 of season 2… we're getting closer and closer to the episode where EVERYTHING CHANGES.


	10. Chapter 10

Okay, here is "The Dark Age". Before I was going to do "Reptile Boy" or "Halloween." But there's a lot of Angel and very little Giles in those. Please enjoy!

*********

_In every generation there is a Chosen One. She alone will stand against the vampires, the demons and the forces of darkness. She is the Slayer._

Giles sat at a table in the library, watching Buffy do her step aerobics to her loud, techno music, while pretending not to. Her glanced over to her and clamped his hands over his ears for affect.

"Must we have this noise during your calisthenics?"

She grinned. "It's not noise! It's music!"

"I know music. Music has notes. This is noise."

"I'm aerobicising! I must have a beat!"

Giles rolled his eyes and muttered, "Wonderful. You work on your muscle tone while my brain dribbles out of my ears."

Neither of them heard the man outside as he pounded on their door in desperation, the dead woman advancing on her.

"No! Please!" The man screamed, making one more desperate attempt to gain the attention of the people inside, "Help!"

The dead woman blacked him up against the door, then moved her hands down to settle around his neck. He began to choke.

Finished her exercises, Buffy decided to cut her Watcher some slack. She strolled over to the table and turned off the music.

Giles smiled. "Ahhh! Very good. And the rest is silence."

Outside, the man fell dead against the ground, and the woman melted away into a pile of goo.

******

Giles tossed and turned in his bed that night, haunted by nightmares of his long supressed past. Behind his closed and wildly flickering eyes, he saw him and his "buddies" performing the rituals, spotted the tattoos etched onto their arms.

"Time to go to sleep!" His younger, nightmare-self said, then gave a long, bloodcurdling scream. A demon appeared before him.

Giles awoke with a start and glanced around his room in confusion. Slowly, his hand reached up to cover the tattoo on his arm, and he closed his eyes tightly against the memories.

******

"Giles!"

The next morning, Giles was so lost in thought that he almost walked right past Buffy, Willow and Xander, who were sitting together outside the school. He turned when she walked is name and walked over.

"Oh! There you are..."

Buffy looked amused about something. "Hey, morning. Say, is that tweed?"

Still preoccupied, Giles tried to focus on her words. "What? Oh, uh, yes. Um, now, uh, look, tonight is very important, um..."

He turned away from her and started towards the library, knowing she would follow. She did, but he still heard her say, "Now, that's a surprise." to Willow and Xander.

Buffy asked, "So, what's on tap tonight that's so important? Uprising, prophesied ritual, preordained deathfest?"

Giles frowned. He wished Buffy would take this more seriously. There was no way he wanted her to turn out like he had been at her age. Assuming it was a game. Just something that was "cool" as opposed to extremely dangerous. That could get her killed.

"Ah, the old standards!" Xander said with a sigh.

"Um, a medical transport is delivering the monthly supply of blood to the hospital."

"Mm. Vampire Meals-On-Wheels." When she stopped at her locker, Giles just smiled and shook his head a bit ruefully. Buffy would never turn out like him. He would be there to prevent that. There was no reason for him to take out his memory-ridden angst out on her. He might start acting like Angel. He shuddered slightly at the thought and said, "

"Hopefully not. Uh, we'll meet outside the hospital at 8:30 sharp. I'll bring the weaponry."

"I'll bring the party mix!"

"Just don't be late."

"Have I ever let you down?" Buffy asked.

_Never_. "Do you want me to answer that, or shall I just glare?"

"Morning, England."

Giles sighed, his new good mood vanquished by the arrival of Jenny.

"Oh, hello, Ms., uh, uh, tuh, Jenny."

Willow grinned at Xander. "Feel the passion!"

"Mm-hm!"

They looked over at Buffy, but her face was blank, unreadable.

"Willow..." Jenny warned.

Willow coughed. "Coughing, not speaking."

"We still on for tomorrow?" The woman asked.

Willow smiled and nodded.

"What's tomorrow?" Xander asked.

Jenny explained. "I'm reviewing some computer basics for the couple of students who've fallen behind. Willow's helping out for extra credit."

Xander: chuckled. "Those poor schlubs have to attend school on Saturday!"

Jenny's head titled to the side. "9am okay with you, Xander?"

His smile faded and Buffy's face lightened somewhat as she said, "Got a bit of schlub on your shoe there."

He made a face at her. "Heh, heh."

"Well, Cordelia's gonna meet us."

Xander's voice went rich with sarcasm. "Ooo, gang, did ya hear that? A bonus day of class plus Cordelia! Mix in a little rectal surgery, and it's my best day ever!"

Jenny turned to Giles. "Walk me to class?"

He forced a smile. "Pleasure."

As they left together, Buffy murmured, "Look at them." Her voice was pained, her expression sad, but Xander and Willow did not notice as they began to talk about how cute Giles and Jenny looked together.

Buffy waited for Giles to look back over his shoulder. To make a face at her and prove he didn't _want _to be walking with Jenny.

He didn't look back.

*********

"Oh!" Jenny said after they had been walking for a while. "Thank you so much for loaning me the Forrester book. It's wonderful!"

Not really listening, Giles managed to say, "Well, I'm glad you enjoyed it!"

"Yeah, it was so romantic, so evocative."

"That edition was my father's. I, I, I must've read it... twenty times."

"Yeah, y'know how you have to, to dog-ear your favorite pages so you can go back to them?"

Giles froze, fully listening for the first time. "Uh, uh, uh, what?"

"Well, I mean, I-I practically had to fold back every single page. So finally I just, I just started underlining all the pages I really wanted to discuss."

"U-u-underlined...?"

"But then, of course, I spilled coffee all over it, I can't even read it..."

Giles felt himself slipping into shock. "It's a first edition!"

She smiled. "I'm lying, Rupert. The book's fine." She held it up, then handed it to him. "I

just love to see you squirm."

Giles smiled, relieved. "Yes, well, I, uh... trust I gave good... squirm."

His book safely in his hands, he no longer needed to listen. So when Jenny said, "Did anyone ever tell you you're kind of a fuddy-duddy?" He simply ran his fingers over the cover and muttered. "Nobody ever seems to tell me anything else."

"Did anyone ever tell you you're kind of a sexy fuddy-duddy?"

At first, Giles was silent as he tried to fight the urge to run away, screaming, at the look on her face. Why did she think he liked her so much????? Sure he was nice enough, but hadn't he made it obvious enough that he wasn't interested?

"Well, no. Actually that, that part usually gets left out." He forced another smile. "I c-can't imagine why."

"This weekend."

Giles winced. He knew what Jenny wanted him to ask. He shuddered slightly, and was about to adamantly refuse, when another memory- or rather, several - occurred to him, these much fresher and much more traumatic to him. Angel. Hearing Buffy talk about Angel, seeing her in his arms, hearing Xander's angry, sarcastic comments about the vampire... "Would you like to go out?"

He could hardly believe he had said the words.

"Mmm" Jenny crooned, pressing her face close to hers. "Mm, no, I think I'd like to stay in."

Jenny pressed her lips against his and Giles sprang back as the bell rang.

"Uh, this," He cleared his throat. "Saturday, then."

"Saturday night." She cleared her throat too and gave him a coy look. "I'll see if I can make you squirm."

Giles shuddered again and hurried off to his library. When he got there, however, there was a detective and two police officers there.

"Rupert Giles?" One woman asked.

"Yes?"

"Detective Winslow. You're gonna have to come with me."

Giles frowned. "Why?"

"There was a homicide on campus last night. The victim had no identification, but he was carrying this slip of paper with your name and address on it." She held up a baggie with the evidence contained in side.

Confused, Giles set his briefcase down. "My name?"

Interruptive as usual, Cordelia chose that moment to walk into the library. "Well, evil just compounds evil, doesn't it? First I'm sentenced to a computer tutorial on Saturday, now I have to read some computer book... There are books on computers? Isn't the point of

computers to replace books?"

Giles interrupted her. "Cordelia, I'm a little busy right now." He waved pointedly at the detective, and to his annoyance, the girl grinned and hurried over.

"Oh! Great! Can you help me with a ticket? It's totally bogus. It was a one-way street. I was going one way."

Giles rolled his eyes and raised his voice. "Cordelia!"

"What?! Why does everyone always yell my name? I'm not deaf! And I can take a hint." Then she frowned. "What's the hint?"

"To come back later."

She sneered. "Yeah, when you've visited decaf land." She left.

Giles turned his attention back to the detective. "Where do you want me to go?"

******

Later, at the city morgue, the coroner opened one of the body storage doors and pulled out the drawer, a body under it covered with a thin sheet.

"Have you had your breakfast?" The attendant asked.

"No."

"That was probably a good idea."

He pulled back the sheet to reveal and heavily bruised and very dead man, who had the most prominent of his many bruises collected around his neck. Giles started in surprise. _Philip? _

"Do you know him?" The detective asked.

His voice at a whisper, Giles said, "Yes. Yes. I-I mean, I did. His name's Philip Henry. He was a friend of mine in London. I... I haven't spoken to him in twenty years."

"Can you think of any reason why he might've wanted to contact you?"

"No."

He looked down and saw the tattoo on Philip's arm. _Dammit. _

"Do you know what that is? The tattoo."

He lied quickly, easily. "No. No, I don't."

******

He had to figure out what was going on.

Giles had been working frantically ever since he had gotten back from the morgue that afternoon. It was far too much of a coincidence. First the nightmare, then Philip showing up to look for him, only to be brutally strangled to death? Something was quite obviously wrong.

Suddenly, there was a knock at the door. Giles sighed at the interruption. _If this was Jenny..._He let the threatening thought die as he opened the door and saw Buffy standing there, her face concerned.

"Buffy. I-it's late. Uh, are you alright?" He watched her face carefully.

"I was gonna ask you the same thing."

She was okay. If she was okay, he really didn't have _time _for this at the moment. Lives were at stake. Normally that was something he would contact Buffy about, but he did not want her to know about that part of his life. Not under any circumstances.

"Yes, I'm fine, fine. Look, I'm, uh, I'm rather busy a-at the moment, so, uh, I'll see you on Monday at, at school."

He started to close the door, but Buffy stopped him.

"Giles, did you forget? The hospital, vampires, handy carryout packets of blood?"

"Oh! Yes, uh, are you alright? W-were you hurt?" His eyes shot back to her face.

"No. I mean, my feelings a little."

His face softened a little. He regretted that. He hadn't meant to leave her out there on her own, especially since he had been in change of weapons. She seemed to wave that aside.

"It doesn't matter. Angel was there. What's wrong?"

Giles' face when hard and blank again. _Angel_. He almost growled, but stopped himself. He couldn't deal with this at the moment.

"Nothing, nothing, nothing's wrong. I-I'm just in the, uh, middle of something extremely important, and, uh, I'm sorry, but I'm gonna have to say good night now."

This time, he closed the door in her face, leaving her confused and a little hurt on the other side.

Giles moved to the phone. "Yes, I'm, I'm sorry to disturb you. It's, uh... I-I realize it's, uh, five in the morning there, um... Uh, I-I'm trying to reach Diedre Page. My name is Rupert Giles, uh, uh, she knows me. It's, it's very important." He listened, then winced. "I'm terribly sorry. I... I-I didn't know. W-when did she, uh, pass away? Ohhhh. That recently." He sat down heavily at his desk. "Um, yes, yes, um, we were friends when we were young. My condolences."

He hung up and stared into space for a minute, his fingers pressing against his lips. Then he took off his glasses and reached for the drink, not caring that the bottle next to his glass was already half empty. He finished the drink and grabbed his pen, crossing Diedre's name off a list in front of him. There were five names on the list. Thomas Sutcliff, Ethan Rayne. Philip Henry, Diedre Page, and Rupert Giles. When he went into the bathroom, he glanced into his mirror and memories assailed him once more.

"So." He murmured. "You're back."

******

In the library at school the next day, Buffy entered the library and headed for Giles' office. Jenny might not believe her that Giles was in trouble, but he had not been _Giles_ last night. Something was wrong, and for whatever reason, he was not telling her what is was. But she fully intended to find out, whether he wanted to tell her or not. Whatever it was, she was not going to let him suffer through it on his own.

Suddenly she heard a strange noise, and looked around the library in confusion, halting in her determined walk. She saw a shadow cross one of the bookcases, and quickly ran up the stairs to the main part of the anteroom, searching each aisle silently.

Buffy heard another noise, and looked up just in time to notice a bookshelf about to be pushed onto her from above. She avoided the bookshelf and dashed after Ethan Rayne, the one who had pushed the shelf in the first place. She caught him easily, as he was limping.

"I know you! You were in that costume shop." Buffy exclaimed.

"Oh, I'm pleased you remember." The man tried to leave, but Buffy stopped him.

"You sold me that dress for Halloween, and nearly got us all killed!"

Ethan shrugged. "But you looked great."

She punched him, hard in the jaw.

"Owww!" He rubbed at his jaw. "So now we're even?"

Buffy scowled. "I'll let you know when we're even. What're you_ doing_ here?"

"Snooping around."

She blinked. "Honesty. Nice touch."

"It's one of my virtues." Then he grinned. "Not really."

"I've got a great idea: why don't I just call the police and have you arrested for breaking and entering, and then I can get back to my fun Saturday?"

"Yes, the police. Well, they'll have all those questions, and they'll really need Rupert to answer them all."

Buffy frowned. "You know Giles."

"We go back. Way back. You don't happen to know where he is, do you?"

*********

Giles was having the nightmare again. Again, in his mind, he saw the tattoo on his arm, the demon, and this time Diedre, her skin rotten and her eyes glowing yellow.

Suddenly, his phone rang, and he awoke with a start. He realized that he had fallen asleep at his desk.

He answered the phone. "Hello."

"Giles, it's me."

Giles breathed out. "Buffy, u-unless this is an emergency, I'll see you on Monday."

"What's the Mark of Eyghon?"

Giles stiffed. No. She could not know ANYTHING about the Mark. Who had told her? Dammit!

"Giles?"

"Cat got his tongue?" Someone spoke from beside Buffy on the other end of the line and Giles recognized the voice immediately. Dammit!

Buffy spoke again, "I'm in your office with someone who claims to be an old friend

of yours. Ethan Rayne?"

"He's there with you? Listen, Buffy, you're... you're in grave danger while Ethan's there. I want you to put the phone down and get out of the library as soon as possible."

"I'm not going anywhere until you give me some answers!" She snapped.

Suddenly there was a loud crash on the other end of the line.

"Buffy?"

There was no answer.

Not bothering to hang up, he dropped the phone on his desk and took off out of his apartment, grabbing his glasses on his way out.

******

In the library, the dead body of Philip had crashed through the window of Giles' office, his eyes glowing a strange yellow. He came out of the office and went straight to Buffy, who kicked him in the chest and rolled over the counter. He came after her again, and Ethan rolled over the counter as well.

"Ethan!" Dead Philip called.

Xander rushed into the room, followed by Cordelia, Willow and Jenny.

"Don't let him get away!" Buffy called.

Xander pushed Ethan up against the counter, and was pushed aside. As Ethan tried to rush past Willow, Jenny and Cordelia, Cordelia kneed him in the crotch, and he collapsed.

Buffy, meanwhile, backed towards the open cage door, then turned and pretended to run inside it. When Philip tried to chase her, she sidestepped at the last instant, and slammed and locked the door after him.

********

Later, Giles burst into the library. The first thing he noticed was that Buffy was okay, watching him with confused and angry green eyes - not that he blamed her for that. The second and third things he noticed were that Ethan was in a chair, being carefully guarded by Buffy, and Dead Philip was locked in the cage.

"Is everyone alright?" He asked.

"Super!" Cordelia enthused. "I kicked a guy!"

"We're okay." Jenny answered, more appropriately.

"Deadguy here interrupted our tutorial." Xander explained, gesturing to Philip. Then he turned to the dead man and said, "Been meaning to thank you for that."

Philip jumped at Xander, startling the boy. Giles walked up to examine his old friend.

"It can't be!"

"Yes, it can." Giles turned to face Ethan. "Hello, Ripper."

Giles scowled at the old nickname. "I thought I told you to leave town."

"You did. I didn't." He looked a little anxious as Giles started towards him. "Shop's lease is paid till the end of the month."

"Uh, why did he call him Ripper?" Cordelia asked Xander, who looked just as baffled.

Giles grabbed Ethan by the hair on the back of his neck and lifted him out of his chair.

"You should've left when I told you." Giles growled.

"Ohhhh..." Cordelia murmured, understanding.

"Giles?!" Buffy cried.

Giles knew he was frightening her, but he was too angry to look at her at the moment. "You put these people in danger. The people I care about."

"If you cared so much about them, why didn't _you_ leave town?" Ethan asked, pushing Giles' arm away. "You've been having the dreams, I know. I have. We both know what's coming."

"What dreams?! What is going on here?!" Buffy cried.

"Tell her, Ripper."

"Giles..."

He turned to her, his eyes already pleading for forgiveness and understanding that he did not really expect. Before he could say anything, however, Philip broke the cage door and threw it open into Jenny, who collapsed. Xander moved away, pulling Cordelia with him, and Giles called Jenny's name in surprise.

He moved to help the woman while Buffy stood between Ethan and Philip and kicked him in the chest several times, forcing him into the cage again. He slid down to the floor, but was up a second later. Before he could reach Buffy, his eyes went wide and he began to convulse. He collapsed yet again next to Jenny and turned into a puddle of slime.

Everyone stared in shock, until Willow muttered, "Now, there's something you don't see everyday."

"I'm gonna be in therapy till I'm thirty." Cordelia agreed.

Buffy looked around. "Where's Ethan? Where'd he go?"

Jenny woke up.

"Are you alright, Jenny?" Giles asked.

"Ow!"

"Careful."

"Ohhh..."

"Can you stand?"

"I think so."

Giles helped Jenny up.

"This is what happens when you have school on Saturday." Cordelia complained, earning a look from Xander.

Jenny groaned. Giles considered pushing her to Xander, which would be easy enough, then looked over at Buffy. Once again an image of Angel fluttered into his mind. Because he was in a nasty mood, he pulled Jenny closer to him.

"Lean on me. It'll be alright."

Buffy's eyes went dark with some unknown emotion, then her face was made carefully blank.

"Promise?" Jenny crooned.

"I promise."

"I believe you."

Jenny closed her eyes and hugged Giles close. Buffy turned away and left the library quickly, in search of Ethan, and Giles watched her go.

*********

When Buffy entered the library once more, Giles was at the table, stoking Jenny's hair as she rested her head on her hand. Buffy purposefully looked at neither of them.

"How's your head?" Giles asked Jenny.

"Throbbing."

"I lost Ethan. Giles, what's going on?" Buffy was glaring at him, and he could tell she was in as horrible a mood as he was now. For some reason, that didn't make him feel any better.

"It's complicated, Buffy, and quite frankly, it's private."

Buffy's glare deepened. "I don't care from private! I care from dead guys attacking us. I care from you lost weekending in your apartment."

"I wasn't..." He sighed and looked away. "I was just trying to find a solution."

"Giles, share! What is the Mark of Eyghon?"

His anger returned and he stood up. "Hey! This is not your battle! And as your Watcher, I'm telling you unequivocally to stay out of it!"

Buffy looked shocked.

"I have to get Jenny home." He helped her up, ignoring the hurt look on Buffy's face.

"Mm. Thank you." Jenny groaned.

They walked from the library.

Fighting back tears and pain, Buffy marched determinedly over to the table where Willow, Cordelia and Xander were sitting. No matter how angry she was at Giles right now, no matter how much he was hurting her, she as NOT going to let him face this alone.

"We have work to do. Will, I want you to find out anything and everything you can about the Mark of Eyghon."

"I'll try the 'Net, but 'Mark of Eyghon' sounds like Giles and his books sorta deal." Willow said.

"Then we hit the books."

Willow vanished into the stacks.

"Xander, how do you feel about digging through some of Giles' personal files and seeing what you can find?"

"I feel pretty good about it. Does that make me a sociopath? Nah."

Cordelia hopped off the counter and looked expectantly at Buffy, who only raised her brows and asked, "What?"

"What about me? I care about Giles."

"Uh, work with Xander."

"Well, when I say 'care', I, I mean..."

"Cordelia..."

"Okay, okay!" She followed Xander into the office.

Buffy sighed and went to work as well.

**********

"Thanks for bringing me here." Jenny looked around Giles' apartment and accepted a drink from him. "Not quite ready to be home alone just yet."

He sat down on the couch next to her and prepared himself to apologize to her. As much as she often annoyd him, he had never meant for this to happen.

"Jenny, uh... I'm so very sorry about all of this. I, uh... I never meant for you to be

involved in, in, uh, any of this."

"So I got involved." She shrugged and leaned forward. "That's what happens when two

people get involved."

Giles smiled slightly, his mind still whirling as he tried to think how he was going to handle this horrible situation.

"I really am, however, gonna have to get you home. It's not, uh... I'm not a very safe person to be around at the moment."

"Nothing's safe in this world, Rupert. Don't you know that by now?"

She reached up and stroked his face.

******

Back in the library, Willow hurried over to Buffy with her book. "Ah! Aha! It's not Egyptian, it's Etruscan. Mistaken for Egyptian by the design pattern, but any fool can see it predates their iconology. Look, the Mark of Eyghon, worn by his initiates. 'Eyghon, also called the Sleepwalker, can only exist in this reality by possessing an unconscious host. Temporary possession imbues the host with a euphoric feeling of power.'"

"Yeah, but what about non-temporary?"

"'Unless the proper rituals are observed, the possession is permanent, and Eyghon will be born from within the host.'"

"I'm guessing eww!" Cordelia interjected.

"Wait. Hey, listen. 'Once called, Eyghon can also take possession of the dead, but its demonic energy soon disintegrates the host, and it must jump to the nearest dead or unconscious person to continue living.'"

"I still don't get what this has to do with Giles." Buffy said, frowning.

"I don't know about Giles, but ancient sects used to induce possession for bacchanals and, and orgies."

"Okay! Giles and orgies in the same sentence. I coulda lived without that one." Xander cried. Cordelia winced in agreement.

Buffy frowned at them, then said, "Uh, wait a minute. The dead guy's all puddly now."

"So the demon's gone." Cordelia said, "There was no one dead to jump into. I mean, we're all not dead, right?"

"No, no one dead." Buffy began.

Xander finished for her. "But someone unconscious."

They look around at each other in shock and alarm.

*****

Giles heard a small noise come from the living room.

"What was that?" He asked, as he came out of the kitchen with tea.

"What was what?"

He frowned slightly, then shrugged. "I thought I heard something."

"I didn't."

Giles handed Jenny some tea. "Here. Drink that, and then I'll drive you home."

Jenny took a sip then set down the cup. "You could take me home. Or you could take advantage of me in my weakened state."

*****

In the library, Buffy hung up the phone sharply. "Thank you, operator. There's no answer at Ms. Calendar's, and Giles' phone is out of order. I'm gonna go over there."

She left.

*****

In Giles apartment, Giles moved quickly away from Jenny. "Now really isn't the right time." He protested.

Why hadn't he just ended this before? Told her he would never care about her in that way? That he already loved another? Why was he so obsessed with getting back at Buffy, when she had never tried to hurt him? Why was he so damned jealous?

"Oh, there's never been a better time."

She pushed him back onto a chair, climbed onto his lap and kissed him. He pushed her away.

"It's not right."

Angry now, Jenny moved away and began to pace. "God, you just don't change, do you?"

"What?"

"It's not right, it wouldn't be proper, people might get hurt. You're like a woman, Ripper. You cry at every funeral. You never had the strength for me. You don't deserve me." Her voice lowered to a whisper. "But guess what? You've got me..." She took his head and her voice lowered to a deep male voice. "Under your skin."

She kissed him again and her face began to transform to that of Eyghon.

"Was it good for you?" She snarled, then smashed his head into the phone.

"Aw, you never had the stomach. But that's okay. 'Cause I'm about to rip it out!"

She pulled him back and slammed him into the floor just as Buffy kicked open the door and ran in, instantly assessed the situation, and kicked Jenny/Eyghon in the jaw. She flew over the couch and onto the floor, then stood and walked around the couch, glaring darkly at the Slayer.

"Back off!" Buffy cried.

She only laughed. "Three down, two to go. Be seeing ya."

She ran and dived through the window, but Buffy ignored her departure and knelt at Giles' side.

"Are you alright? Giles, how do we stop this?"

"Oh, God, what have I done?"

"Talk to me! Giles, you're scaring me."

He blinked her into focus. "I'm sorry."

"Don't be sorry, be Giles. C'mon, we fight monsters. This is what we do. They show up, they scare us, I beat 'em up and they go away. This isn't any different!"

"It is different."

"Because you don't know how to stop it?"

"Because I _created_ it!"

Buffy was silent for a moment, then helped him up and led him to the couch. Then she sat beside him and waited silently for an explanation. Giles sighed and began.

"I was twenty-one, studying history at Oxford. And, of course, the occult by night. I hated it. The tedious grind of study, the... overwhelming pressure of my destiny. I dropped out, I went to London...I fell in with the worst crowd that would have me. We practiced magicks. Small stuff for pleasure or gain. And Ethan and I discovered something... bigger."

"Eyghon."

"Yes. One of us would, um... " Unable to look at her, he poured himself a drink and studied it. "Go into a deep sleep, and the others would, uh, summon him. It was an extraordinary high!" He smiled humourlessly. "God, we were fools."

"You couldn't control it."

"One of us, Randall, he lost control. Eyghon took him whole. We tried to exorcise the demon from Randall, but it killed him. No. We killed him. We thought we were free of the demon after that. But now he's back. And one by one, he will kill us all."

"Three down, two to go?"

Giles nodded.

"Then it's going after Ethan." She stood. "I better beat it there."

Giles stood too. This was exactly what he had wanted to avoid. He did not want anyone - least of all Buffy- paying for his mistakes. "_We'd_ better."

"_I'd_ better." She corrected. "Giles, you're barely mobile, and speed is of a serious essence here."

He could not argue. Slowly, he sat back down. "I don't know how to stop it without killing Jenny."

"I've got the guys working on it. I'll, um, try to contain it until we figure something."

She started to leave.

"Buffy?" When she stopped and turned to look at him, he caught her eyes and looked at her carefully, searching for lingering signs of anger. He wished, in that moment, that he could tell her how he really felt. That he loved her so much, and was only acting this way because he would be unable to stand losing her. Instead he simply said, "I'm sorry."

She sighed slightly, and said, "I know." Then she left.

The moment she was gone Giles closed his eyes and focused on her mind, searching for her amid the jumble of his already overcrowded mind. It took him longer then usual to locate her, but when the vision finally came, it was jump in time for him to see Buffy opening the door to Ethan's shop several long blocks away.

_"Ethan?" She came in and closed the door, looked around. "Ethan? Giles told me everything. Look, it's coming for you." _

_Ethan appeared behind her. "And you came to protect me? I'm touched." _

_"Don't worry, it's nothing personal. To protect Giles I have to protect you." _

_Ethan looked at her curiously. "How does Ripper inspire such goodness?" _

_Giles waited for Buffy's answer too. For a moment, she was silent, and a hundred emotions seemed to cross her mind at once. Then she merely shrugged and said, "'Cause he's Giles." _

_"And I'm not. Still, lucky me." Ethan said. _

_Buffy wasn't paying that much attention. "Hmm. Lucky you." _

_"Well, we can't run. Eyghon will find us." He lifted his sleeve to show her his tattoo. "This _

_mark's like a homing beacon." _

_"That's okay. I'm not much into running." _

_Ethan rolled his eyes. "Aren't we manly?"_

_"One of us is. You're gonna hide till it's over."_

_Ethan wasn't insulted. He just nodded. "Excellent plan." _

_"Is there a way in through the back?" _

_"Uh, there's a back door. It's locked. I think it's solid." _

_Buffy nodded. "We'll set up there. Let's go." _

_"Oh, no, please." _

_He gestured for her to go first, and Giles' eyes instantly narrowed in suspicion. _

_She headed toward the back, and Ethan picked up an arm from a mannequin. _

_"Buffy look out!" Giles shouted futilely. She could not hear him. Ethan slammed the arm into Buffy, and she crumpled to the floor. _

_"Ladies first." Ethan said. _

And the vision faded.

As long as it took him to get into the vision, it took him twice as long to escape from it, despite the fact that he could see nothing anymore. He was not practiced at following Buffy with his mind of his own free will, and they rarely came on their own anymore. Cursing to himself, Giles finally managed to pull free. He jumped off the couch and grabbed his coat. Suddenly, his vision went black again and he toppled to the floor. Another vision? No. Another nightmare. His mind had been left open and weak by his forced vision, and the waking nightmare had caught him unawares.

Images flashed through his mind. He can see the Mark of Eyghon, and various friends incarnate of the demon. The last thing he sees however, terrifies him. Buffy, writing on the table as Ethan tattoos the Mark of Eyghon on the back of her neck. Buffy is trying hard not to scream, but she is obviously in great pain. Giles woke.

"Oh! Ethan... No. No!" God, not Buffy! He staggered to his feet and out the door, ignoring weak muscles and not bothering to close the door behind him. Giles

barges in through the door.

******

Giles drove as fast as he could in his weakened and cloudy-minded state, but when he got there Jenny/Eyghon was already attacking Buffy, trying to knock her unconscious or kill her so he could take her body. Ethan was nowhere to be seen.

"Eyghon! Take me." Giles shouted.

Jenny/Eyghon turned to face him.

"Buffy, get out of here!"

As Jenny/Eyghon advanced on Giles, Buffy leapt between them. "No! No!"

Jenny/Eyghon stretched her arm out at Buffy and sent her flying into a pile of boxes. Giles cried out in protest, but the demon grabbed his collar and pulled him to the floor, standing over him.

"I've been waiting a long time to do this." She snarled.

As she bent down, Angel came crashing through the door, grabbed Jenny/Eyghon and smashed her into a crate. He began to choke her, and Xander, Willow and Cordelia ran in behind him, Willow helping Giles to his feet.

"He's killing her!" Giles said.

Willow shook her head. "No! Trust me! This is gonna work!"

Xander helped Buffy up just as Eyghon lost the fight and leapt from Jenny's body and into Angels. Jenny falls to the floor and Angel begins to tremble and convulse against the wall. Willow let go of Giles, but instead of hurrying to Buffy, as he wanted to, she knelt down by Jenny. Buffy was okay, he was not entirely sure Jenny was.

"Jenny?"

Angel's face twisted, from vampire to human and back again, as the demon inside of him battled it out with Eyghon. Finally, the demon inside Angel kicked Eyghon out of the body. Bodiless, Eyghon crumbled into ashes and died.

Everyone hurried to Angel, except Giles, who was still trying to make sure Jenny was okay.

"Jenny?"

"Rupert?"

Ethan came out from where he'd been cowering and ran from the shop.

"You knew that if the demon was in trouble it was gonna jump into the nearest dead person." Buffy said to Angel. Angel turned his wide, puppy-dog brown eyes to Buffy.

"I put it in danger."

"And it jumped." Said Willow, standing.

No one noticed the glare Giles shot Angel from across the room.

Angel stood. "I've had a demon inside me for a couple hundred years...Just waitin' for a good fight."

"Winner and still champion." Buffy agreed, standing way to close to the vampire for Giles' liking.

"Uh, I think that Ethan guy disappeared again." Xander pointed out.

Buffy frowned. "Darn. I really wanted to hit him till he bled."

"Well, at least it's over." Cordelia said.

Buffy and Angel looked over at Jenny and Giles. Jenny clung to Giles as they walked out of the shop.

Angel, who was the only one who knew Giles' true feelings for Buffy, looked between the two of them and sighed. Would they ever work this out? As much as Angel loved Buffy, as much as he didn't want to loose her, Giles' love for her was different. Deeper. There was no way he could ever compete with Giles' for Buffy's heart. Judging by the pain in Buffy's gaze as she watched Jenny snuggle into Giles, and Giles bend to kiss her head, Giles had already won it.

******

The next day, Giles saw Jenny in the hall. He had to mend their friendship. He knew she was angry with him over what had happened, but as much as he found Jenny annoying sometimes, and as much as it bugged him that she was often so gaga over him, he found he did not want to loose her as a friend. He hurried over to her.

Jenny felt a deep, horrible pain inside of her, as she walked the halls of Sunnydale High. It had nothing to do with physical pain, but it did not make it any less easy.

"Uh, uh, Jenny! Jenny..."

She stopped and faced Giles, careful to keep her expression blank.

"Rupert, hi."

"Uh... I-I-I tried to call you last night, s-see how you were."

Jenny looked away. "Yeah, I-I-I, uh... I left my phone off the hook. I seem to need a lot of sleep lately."

"But, but you're al-alright? Is, is, is there anything you need?"

"Mm, no, I'm fine. I mean, I'm not... running around, wind in my hair, 'the hills are alive with the sound of music' fine, but... I'm coping."

"I, I would like to help." Giles offered.

"I know."

"Perhaps we could, um, talk sometime, um... dinner, or, or a drink? When you're feeling stronger."

"Sure, sometime."

Giles reached out to her, wanting her just touch her arm, know that she was okay, but she backed up.

"Yeah. Sometime. I better get to class."

"Yes, of course."

Jenny walked away. She could feel Giles' gaze on her, but she knew he was merely worried about her, and guilty. She had delusioned herself as long as she could. She would never be with Giles. The pain inside her had nothing to do with the demon attack the day before. That had not _truly _been Giles' fault. Simply a mistake from his younger and more foolish days. Didn't Giles think she would be able to tell that he loved Buffy, and not her? She had known Giles was only using her to get back at Buffy, because he was jealous of Angel. but she had been so desperate that she hadn't cared.

Now it was horribly obvious that she would never be able to change his mind. Buffy and Giles love, whether they had admitted their feelings to each other or not, ran far to deep. Nothing she would ever do would change their love for each other. She could never love him as much as Buffy did, just as Giles would never be able to love her as much as he loved Buffy. Was there anyone, aside from Giles and Buffy themselves, that this was not completely clear and obvious to?

Jenny looked back at Giles one more. The man turned to go to the library, then paused and turned again to see Buffy coming towards him. It was all in their faces as their eyes caught and held, as their expressions brightened slightly at the sight of the other.

Jenny entered the classroom, and didn't look back again.

"Hey." Buffy said when she reached Giles.

Giles continued to move, and didn't stop walking until they were around the corner. Then he turned to face her.

Buffy's small heart shaped face was tilted up to his, creased with concern. Despite her obvious anger and jealousy over Jenny the last couple of days, her worry was sincere as she asked,

"Is she okay?"

He didn't really know what to say to that. "Um... The hills are not alive."

Buffy frowned in confusion. "I'm sorry to hear that. I think."

Giles shrugged. "I don't think she'll ever really forgive me. Maybe she shouldn't."

"Maybe you should."

He looked into her earnest, shining face, then looked away.

"I never wanted you to see that side of me."

"I'm not gonna lie to you. It was scary. I'm so used to you being the grownup, and then I find out that you're a person."

At first he frowned, not wanting to believe that Buffy saw him that way. Then he saw the teasing light in her eyes and smiled.

"Most grownups are."

"Who would've thought?"

Giles nodded. "Some are even, uh... shortsighted, foolish people."

"So, after all this time, we finally find out that we _do_ have something in common. Which, apart from being a little weird, is kind of okay." She paused, then said, "I think we're supposed to be training right now."

"Yes. Yes. Um, need to concentrate on your flexibility."

"And you know what? I have just the perfect music." She grinned and held up her CD. "Go on, say it. You know you want to."

Giles grinned at her. "It's not music, it's just, uh, meaningless sounds."

"There. Feel better?"

"Yes. Thanks."

They started off towards the library.

"Bay City Rollers. Now, that's music."

"I didn't hear that."

******

Okay that was fun ^ ^ Anyway, I'm very excited because the next episode is the one where things finally change between Buffy and Giles!!!! It will probably be updated tomorrow or the next day.


	11. Chapter 11

Sorry… this chapter took a long time. But I finally have my shiny new laptop, so they'll be updated more quickly from now on. I was going to make _the _episode "Ted", but I didn't quite realize how many BuffyXAngel and GilesXJenny scenes there were in that episode. So, instead, here's "Bad Eggs".

************************************************************************

_In every generation there is a Chosen One. She alone will stand against _

_the vampires, the demons and the forces of darkness. She is the Slayer._

************************************************************************

Buffy was distracted.

She couldn't help it. It wasn't her fault, really. It was just that her life was so full of slaying and schooling and partying that when she was finally alone, with nothing more important to do then pick up her mother's clothes at 'Everyday Woman', her head was busy and full.

The most confusing and distracting thought in her head at the moment was really very simple at first glance. Giles. What was there to be confused about, really? He was her Watcher. And the librarian at her school. He was to be thought of as stuffy, strange and of little importance.

And yet no matter how many times she told herself that, she could not help but see his shining hazel eyes looking into hers, feel the pressure of his hand in hers, feel the warmth of his body behind hers as they both looked out over the crowded ruckus of the Bronze. Every moment she spent with Giles was special to her. More special then it should be. And yet she couldn't get such thoughts out of her head.

Buffy blinked herself back into focus as she got onto the elevator, and looked around to make sure she was going to the right way. The Sunnydale mall wasn't very big, but it was extremely crowded today, and she wouldn't be surprised if she had gotten turned around. Luckily, though, she seemed to be in the right place.

As her gaze roamed around the mall, her eyes lighted on a man dressed up as a cowboy, going down the escalator with his girlfriend. Buffy rolled her eyes. _Nice costume, _she thought. Then she saw something that made her pause.

In the large mirrored wall behind the escalator, she could see her reflection, and that of the cowboys girlfriend. But the cowboy had no reflection.

Buffy turned instantly and began to ran back up the escalator, going the wrong way. People shouted and grumbled as she weaved her way through the mass, but she ignored them. When she got to the top, she slowed to a walk, trying to remain inconspicuous as she followed them down a hallway.

At one point, Buffy slowed down too much and lost sight of the couple. But it only took her a minute of wandering before she found them in the arcade.

The arcade was deserted except for the vampire and the girl, who were at the pinball machine. The girl was playing enthusiastically.

"Turn around, baby, I have somethin' to show ya." The vampire said from behind her.

"Wait a sec. This is my high score."

The girl continued to play, and the vampire moved up behind her. He took off his hat and moved the girl's hair aside, his face morphing into his true demonic appearance.

"Well, ain't you just got the prettiest little neck I ever did see." The vampire drawled.

"Boy, you guys really never come up with any new lines, do you?" Buffy asked.

Simultaneously, girl and vampire looked over at Buffy, clearly annoyed.

"Do you mind? We were talking here." The girl snapped.

Buffy turned suddenly shimmering eyes to the vampire. "But you promised you'd never cheat on me again, honey." She crooned.

The girl blinked, scowled, and pulled her bag onto her arm. "Um, I better go."

"But I ain't done yet." The cowboy snarled, and the girl turned to see his face.

The girl took a hurried step back and gasped, frightened. Then she turned and ran from the room.

The vampire looked back at Buffy. "Alright, sugar lips. Giddy-up!"

He put on his hat and lashed out at Buffy, who easily blocked his punch and threw one of her own, smashing him in the face and between the legs. When he dropped his hands, she shoved him into the pinball machine.

The vampire smiled at her. "Well, you're a rough one, ain't cha! I like that!"

He swung at her again, and she blocked it. He aimed higher, and she ducked. Finally, as if frustrated, her grabbed her by the arms and threw her into the pinball machine. The glass shattered around her, and the cowboy was at her side again, lifting her by the straps on her backpack.

"You must be that Slayer I've been hearin' so much about. Lyle Gorch. Pleased to meet cha!"

Buffy kicked him off of her and into another game.

"Pleasure's mine!"

In one simple move, Buffy leapt off the machine towards him, and even when he ducked out of the way she spun to face him again, stake already in hand. Lyle stood, settled his hat back on his head, and pointed a finger at her.

"This ain't over!"

He ran.

Buffy rolled her eyes and let him go. For now. "Oh, sure. They _say_ they'll call." She muttered.

Buffy trudged back though the mall towards the food court. She smiled when she saw her mom and sat down.

"Oh bliss. Mall food."

Joyce blinked at her. "Buffy?"

"Mom?"

"Where's my dress?"

Buffy frowned. "Your dr…? Oh. Oh God."

Joyce shook her head disapprovingly. "Let me guess: you were distracted by a boy."

Buffy thought of the cowboy vampire. "Technically."

"Buffy…"

"Look, I-I can go get it right now."

"They're closed. I'll just have to fit it in tomorrow."

"Sorry."

Joyce adopted a stern tone. "A little responsibility is all I ask. Honestly, don't you ever think about anything besides boys and clothes?"

"Saving the world from vampires?" Buffy suggested, knowing her mom would not take it seriously.

Joyce crossed her arms over her chest and shook her head again. "I swear, sometimes I don't know what goes on in your head."

Buffy just sighed and glanced away.

*****

The next day in the library, Giles and Buffy were hard at work trying to research the cowboy vampire she had met at the mall. Giles was in the cage behind her, and Buffy was working in the card catalogue.

Giles glanced through the bars of the cage at her, and his eyes roamed her bent head, her perfect skin, the loose lock of blonde hair that fell over the side of her face. Then he jerked his gaze away. _What was he doing? _He was her teacher, for God's sake.

Luckily, it was then that Willow and Xander entered the library, bringing a welcome distraction to the tension in the room.

"Buffy! How come you weren't in class?" Willow called.

Buffy looked up, surprised, then winced. "Vampire issues. Did Mr. Whitmore notice I was tardy?"

"I think the word you're searching for is 'absent'." Xander pointed out.

Willow nodded. "Tardy people show."

"Right."

"And, yes, he did notice, so he wanted me to give you this." Willow handed her an egg.

Buffy frowned and rolled the egg around in her hand. "As far as punishments go this is fairly abstract."

Willow beamed at her, "No, it's your baby!"

Buffy blinked. "Okay, I get it even less."

"Well, you know, it's the whole 'sex leads to responsibility' thing," Xander explained. "Which I personally don't get. You gotta take care of the egg. It's a baby. You gotta keep it safe and teach it Christian values."

Willow shot Xander a look. "My egg is Jewish."

"Then teach it that Dreidel song."

Willow smiled.

Buffy groaned. "I can't do this! I can't take care of things! I killed my Giga Pet. Literally, I sat on it and it broke."

She set her egg down and walked over to a cart of books.

"You'll do fine!" Willow insisted.

"Yeah, the only thing that stresses me is when do we tell them that they're adopted?"

"I'll just lay that one off on my partner." Buffy said, then she looked up, worried, "Who'd I get?"

"Well, there were an uneven number of students, and you didn't show, so…"

Buffy gasped, "I'm a single mother?"

Xander nodded. "No man of her own."

"Do you know what this says about me? That I am doomed to lead my mother's life! How deeply scary is that?"

"How 'bout this: it says nothing, it means nothing, this whole egg experiment thing is completely pointless!"

Giles burst out of the cage with a book in hand, pretending he hadn't been listening to the entire conversation.

"Success! At last. Your playmate is a fellow of repute, it seems."

He moved to set the book the book down on top of the card catalogue. Suddenly Buffy gasped in fright and snatched something out from under it. Her egg was clutched in her hand.

Giles winced, but pretended not to notice as he dropped the book and opened it to a picture of two cowboys.

"That's, um, Lyle Gorch, and that one's his brother, Tector. They're from Abilene. They, uh, they made their reputation by massacring an entire Mexican village in 1886." He took off his glasses and rubbed at them distractedly.

"Friendly little demons." Buffy mused.

"That was before they became vampires."

She raised her eyebrows at him.

"B-but, um, the good news is that they're... not amongst the great thinkers of our times. I doubt if they're up to much. They're probably just drawn here by the, uh, Hellmouth's energy." He put his glasses back on.

"'Nuff said! I propose Buffy slays 'em. All in favor?" Xander's hand shot into the air.

Willow copied the movement. "Aye!"

"I-I don't think you should underestimate them." Giles cautioned. "I mean, y-you may need to have some help if, if, if, if…" He was going to say if they proved to be stronger then expected, but even the thought of such a danger to Buffy unsettled him, so instead he pretended to be distracted by the eggs. "Why do you all have eggs?"

Willow smiled. "Hey, maybe you can have Angel help you find the Gorches."

Giles frowned. _Not Angel. I can help you._ It was too bad he had yet to admit to Buffy that he could also fight. "Yes! Yes, yes, that's not a bad idea. Strength in numbers." He muttered.

"Oh, right. I see a lotta hunting getting done in _that _scenario."

Giles eyes narrowed.

"Please. Like Angel and I are just helpless slaves to passion. Grow up!"

************************************************************************

That night at the park, the first thing Angel did was wrap his arms around Buffy and kiss her passionately.

Buffy pulled back. "I really…"

"I know."

He tried to kiss her again, and Buffy pulled back. "No, you don't know. Angel please…"

He frowned at her. "What's wrong?"

_How could she do this? How could she break it off with Angel, just because she was confused? It wasn't fair…_

Angel started kissing her again. Buffy broke the kiss.

"You know, this isn't hunting in the classical sense. We should…"

"You're right."

He kissed her yet again. Then _he _pulled back.

"Okay."

"Okay."

They started walking side by side.

"You see anything?"

"No."

"Okay. Enough hunting."

Angel kissed her again.

"Wait, Angel, can I please say something?"

"Yeah, what?"

"I don't know about this."

_God, what was she doing? Angel was hot! He was dark, but he cared about her. Everything she had ever wanted in a guy. What was she saying? _

"What do you mean?" Angel asked.

"I mean… I think I'm falling in love with someone else."

Angel's eyes widened in disbelief, and he took a step back from Buffy. "Buffy… what do you mean someone else?"

But suddenly, he knew. _Giles. _Buffy was in love with Giles! He had known the older man was in love with her, but… How could Buffy return that love? Giles was hardly her type, and he was twice as old as her. Of course, that was nothing compared to how much older Angel was, but at least he _looked_ young. How could she do this to him?

Buffy was obviously searching for words, her green eyes large and shimmering, her expression upset. Maybe they just needed a bit of time. Time to make sure they knew what they were doing.

Buffy glanced away from Angel, lowering her eyes as she struggled with what to say. Then she saw a flash of movement out of the corner of her eye, and when she looked up, Angel was gone.

************************************************************************

Buffy walked into her room, wiping the last traces of her tears from her cheek as she moved over to her bed.

"Okay, little egg dude." She whispered, opening her egg diary. "Let's see. Feeding? Check. Burping? Ewwww…check. Diapers…Sort of, in theory, I guess."

She set her egg in the little basket she had made for it.

"Okay."

Buffy set the notebook down and crawled under covers, then yawned widely.

"Good night, Eggbert."

She turned out the light and went to sleep, never noticing when the egg cracked open and tentacles reached over towards her.

***********************************************************************

Buffy woke up the next morning feeling groggy and disoriented. She ran her hand through her hair and sat up.

"Oh…oh, God."

She sat up and looked over towards her egg, which was whole and apparently unaltered.

Buffy stumbled downstairs and walked over to where her mother was sitting. She set the egg on the counter and took a sip of coffee.

"At least eat something if you're gonna drink that." Joyce suggested.

"Not that hungry."

Joyce munched on a piece of toast and gestured to the egg.

"How's the parenting going?"

"Fine."

"Are you sure your egg is secure in that?" She asked, frowning at the nest.

Buffy frowned back at her. "Did I ask for backseat mommying?"

"Are we a little touchy this morning?"

"No, I just feel all funky."

"Hmm." She reached up and felt her daughter's forehead. "You don't have a fever."

"Oh, no, it's not that, I just... I didn't sleep well."

Joyce struggled not to laugh. "What's the matter? Your egg keep you up all night?"

Buffy gave her mother a Look. "You're killing me. Parenting's a pain!"

Joyce smiled, "Wait till it starts dating."

Buffy rolled her eyes, snatched her egg up, and left.

************************************************************************

Giles was returning some books to the shelves in the library when he walked out to see Xander, Willow and Buffy staring at him from the first level.

He scanned Buffy's face first, and his forehead creased with concern. Something was wrong. "Oh! Why are you three hanging about? Don't you have classes to go to?"

"Teen health got canceled." Willow explained.

"Mr. Whitmore's out. Couldn't find an egg sitter or something." Xander added.

Buffy and Willow walked up a few stairs.

"Well, then, can you give me a hand?"

"No." The girls said simultaneously.

They sat down, but Xander bounced up to help.

"Sure!"

"How did the, um... hunt go last night, Buffy?" He watched her face carefully.

"No go."

"Uh, 'no', 'no' you didn't go, or, or, or you were unsuccessful?"

"No Gorches."

"Apparently Buffy has decided the problem with the English language is all those pesky words. You... Angel... big... Smoochies?"

"Shut... Up."

Giles didn't smile. "I-it's true, Buffy, you and Willow do seem a little sluggish. Are you quite sure everything's alright?"

_If Angel had hurt Buffy… But then why did Willow seem equally sluggish? _

"Maybe something we ate." Willow suggested.

"Or perhaps it's the burden of parenthood." Xander argued, "Notice how seriously you two have taken this egg thing."

As if to prove his point, both Buffy and Willow clutched their eggs closer, protectively.

"While I, in turn, have, uh, well, chosen a more balanced approach." Xander added, as he pulled his egg out, tossing it up carelessly.

Willow gasped, "Xander, maybe you shouldn't…"

Xander interrupted her. "That's exactly what I'm talking about. You can't stress over every little thing! A child picks up on that. Which is a one-way ticket to neurotic city."

He caught the egg and tossed the egg up, then tossed it again and missed. Buffy, Willow and Giles and gasped, horrified, but the egg appeared to be unharmed.

"It didn't break!" Willow put on a suspicious tone. "Why didn't it break?"

Xander smiled, a little guiltily. "Which is another secret to conscientious egg care: pot of scalding water and about eight minutes."

Willow's eyes widened. "You boiled your young?"

"Yeah! I know it sounds cruel, but sometimes you gotta be cruel to be kind! I mean, you can bet that little Xander here is thick skinned now."

Giles raised his eyebrows. "Technically that would be cheating, yes?"

"No! It's like a short cut. You know, when you run a race?"

"That would also be cheating." Buffy pointed out.

Willow shook her head. "You should be ashamed."

"I suppose there is a sort of... Machiavellian ingenuity to your transgression." Giles admitted with a shrug. He was not really paying attention… Buffy looked even weaker then ever and was resting her head against the wall behind her.

" I resent that!" Xander exclaimed. When Giles shot him a look, he said, "Or possibly thank you."

Cordelia entered the library. "Figures you three would all be hanging in the dungeon while something major's going on at Sunnydale High."

"And what would that be, Cordelia? Barrette Appreciation Day?" Xander quipped, turning back to his shelving.

"Mr. Whitmore didn't show today."

Buffy looked over at Cordelia. "That news is of the past."

"He's missing? Presumed dead?"

Giles sighed. "Presumed by whom?"

She crossed her arms. "Well, me!"

"I think we should give him a few hours before we give up on him completely." Giles said sarcastically.

"Well, I think we should look around, don't you Xander?"

"It can wait."

"Well, his body could fall out of a closet somewhere."

Xander looked at the others anxiously.

"So we should check some closets to see if he's in a closet?"

"You're right. There could be a closet. Let's go."

Xander jumped down the stairs. "You guys look for more clues. We'll meet back here."

Xander grabbed Cordelia's arm and dragged her out of the library.

Buffy's eyes drifted closed. "We'll get right on it."

"Are they getting weirder?" Willow asked, "Have you noticed the weirdness of them?"

"They're weird. Should I have guilt about not looking for Mr. Whitmore?"

Giles smiled, "I-I'd rather you conserve your strength for hunting the Gorches."

"I'll be fine by tonight. Maybe I'll sweep the cemetery?"

Giles' smile instantly faded. "Well, be careful, i-i-if you're still feeling a little sluggish."

"No worries."

"And Angel's helping you, right?"

Buffy glanced away, unsure what to say. She didn't even know if Angel would be willing to talk to her. Reluctantly, she looked up and met Giles concerned gaze.

"He does what he can."

************************************************************************

Buffy was alone in the cemetery, once again far too distracted to put any real effort into searching for the Gorches. But this time, it wasn't Angel who was distracting her. Not in the sense of actually being there, anyway.

What was she going to tell him? The truth, right? She'd have to. She couldn't stand it anymore. His kisses still made her tingle, but there was no deeper feeling in it. And she couldn't help but think of Giles whenever they were together, no matter how ridiculous it seemed later…

"Buffy."

"Eep!"

She spun around to face Angel, who was standing behind her laughing.

"You'd think the Slayer would be more alert. In a cemetery. At night." Angel said.

Buffy put her hands on her hips. "You'd think the vampire would take our 'subtle' hints and start wearing a bell."

Angel smiled, then let his expression become sober once more. "Buffy, I want to talk about what you said yesterday."

Buffy's smile also faded, and her eyes grew wide. "Angel about that…"

"Why is he so much better then me?" Angel asked sadly.

"He? Angel… What are you talking about?"

His face hardened slightly, but when he spoke his voice sounded a little broken.

"I know I'm a monster, Buffy. But…"

Buffy's eyes filled with tears. "I don't know why I'm doing this. I don't even know… It doesn't feel fair to you, but…"

Angel waved his hand at her, dismissively. "Buffy, I understand. He… He cares about you."

"Angel I don't understand. Who are you talking about?"

"You know who I'm talking about."

Buffy wasn't sure what to say to that.

"And he can offer you a future. Did you know I can't have children? I can't offer you anything. You would grow old and die, and I would still look exactly the same. I've known all along how difficult that would be. For both of us."

Buffy still couldn't speak. Tears were pouring down her cheeks. For the thousandth time, she wondered, _why am I doing this? _

Angel turned to face her again. His face was clear, his eyes dry. He lifted his cool hands and placed them on either side of her face.

"Buffy. I love you." He didn't say it insistently, as if he were trying to convince her. Just simply. It was the truth.

"I love you too." Buffy replied. But she knew it was not in the way he wanted…

Reading her mind, Angel chuckled sadly and kissed her forehead gently, "I know you do. But not the way he loves you. Not in the way you love him. I've known since the day you killed the Master, Buffy."

She stared u at him, dazzled, bewildered. "I'm sorry…"

He shook his head. "Don't be. I understand. But… Stay away from me for a while, okay? If you need me, I'll be here. But I need some time."

Buffy nodded, and closed her eyes. When she opened them, he was gone.

************************************************************************

Once again, Buffy climbed into her room with tear-stained cheeks. She was distracted, lost in thought, until she glanced over to her egg and saw it rocking back and forth in its nest. Her eyes widened.

Slowly, Buffy walked over to her egg, her eyes now narrowed in suspicion and confusion. The shell began to break and crack, and, without warning, two pieces of shell blew off to reveal a purple-gray thing with tentacles.

The thing jumped out at Buffy, and she reacted automatically, moving out of the way and spinning around to watch the thing crawl under her bed. From beside the bed. She knelt in front of the bed, and lifted the edge of the blanket.

The egg-creature isn't there.

Suddenly, it jumps from out of nowhere and lands on her back. With a gasp of surprise, Buffy grabbed it and flung it off of her, then spun and threw it. As it crawled along, she reached over and snatched a pair of scissors from her desk. When the creature began to crawl up the wall, she turned and stabbed the scissors through the thing and into the wall.

The creature finally dead, Buffy fell back against her bed in relief. Her next thought was to call someone, so she snatched the phone and dialed the first number that came to mind.

lean against her bed. Her next thought is to call Willow. She

frantically grabs for her phone on the nightstand and knocks it and the

clock to the floor. She grabs the receiver and nervously taps in the

numbers.

"Come on! Pick up!"

Willow answered the phone. "Hello?"

"Willow! Are you okay?"

"Why shouldn't I be?"

"Your egg! I-is it doing anything?"

Willow sounded confused. "Doing what?"

"Break it! Right now! I want you to smash it with something heavy!"

"Buffy, what…"

"My egg! It went... It went postal on me! The thing hatched, and it, it sprung this creepy-crawly thing, and it attacked me!"

"Are you okay?"

"Yeah, no, I'm fine, but, but your egg!"

"I-is totally normal. Uh, I put it in the fridge."

"Oh."

"Maybe it's a trap. Something the Gorch bothers planted for you?" Willow suggested.

"Maybe. Yeah, uh... I'm sorry, I shouldn't have woken you. Uh, g-go back to sleep."

"You sure?"

"Yeah! Yeah, I'm, I'm better. I'm, I'm fine."

"Okay. I'll see ya tomorrow."

Buffy turned off the phone.

What she couldn't see was that on the other end of the line…the egg already had control of Willow.

************************************************************************

The next day at school Xander was sitting down in front of the school munching on a chocolate bar. He frowned at it disapprovingly.

"Mm. Cardboardy!"

He tossed the candy bar aside and opened up his back pack to find his egg. He pulled it out.

"Sorry, Junior, but a man's gotta eat."

He tapped the egg against the wall he was sitting on and started to take off the shell.

"So, was there any more hatchling activity last night?" Willow asked Buffy as they started towards Xander.

"No. Uh, you were probably right. It was just a trap from them set for me. And everyone else's egg seemed perfectly normal."

"Did you bring the thing that attacked you?"

"Yeah. Giles wants to see it. He's in full research mode."

"Okay. Well, bring it to the science lab, and I'll get Giles, and we'll analyze it." Willow said.

"Great. You know, I always say that a day without an autopsy... is like a day without sunshine." Buffy quipped.

Xander nodded at them as they approached. "Hey."

He held up his egg and was about to take a bite when he saw the dead creature inside.

"AHHH!"

************************************************************************

_Where was Buffy?_

Giles was pacing back and forth in his office, frowning to himself. Why hadn't he seen Buffy today? She always came to the library at least once. Always. And she was supposed to bring him that egg creature to show him. So why hadn't she shown up? Where was she? He needed to talk to her.

He sank down into his seat. Maybe it wasn't the best idea to tell her how he truly felt. But his feelings for her were too deep, too all-consuming for him to keep it from her any longer. Even if she rejected him and called the council to request a new watcher… he'd have to be okay with that. What other choice did he have? Buffy meant the world to him, and if there was even the slimmest chance…

Suddenly, he heard a noise from the front of the library. Instantly, he perked up. _Buffy? _He stood from his desk and left the office. No one was there. Frowning, he looked around.

"Buffy? Is that you?"

Nothing.

Then, without warning, something small, but heavy, landed on his back. Giles yelped and fell forward, knocking the thing off of him. It was a large, flat looking creature, a strange purplish gray colour, with tentacles. There were bits of egg shell on its back.

Of course, this was the egg creature Buffy had mentioned! There were more of them? She had insisted that the other eggs seemed perfectly normal, but what if she was wrong? What if the other students had been attacked? What if one of them had gotten Buffy, and that's why she hadn't shown up?

Giles lurched to his feet and looked around for a weapon, mind churning for an answer. Before he could act, however, the thing leapt around him, jumped onto his back again. And this time it latched on.

Giles felt his mind going numb as the thing took over. His thoughts were still in order. He could see everything around him. He just couldn't control his movements.

His body lurched again as the Creature tried to get used to moving that human body around. Then a wave of dizziness crashed over Giles. What was happening? What was the creature doing to him?

But the creature was confused too. Giles could feel it. This wasn't its doing, this was a vision.

Everything went black.

************************************************************************

Buffy, Cordelia and Xander were in the science lab together, and Xander and Buffy were looking down at the dissection tray on which the dead creatures sat.

"Can I just say Gyughhh!" Xander exclaimed.

"I see your 'Gyughhh!' and raise you a Nyaghhh!" Buffy agreed.

"What is it?" Cordelia asked.

"We don't know what it is, Cordelia, that's why we're here. Capisce?"

"'Capisce'? What are you, world traveler now?"

Willow entered the lab. Instantly, Giles saw the egg creature on her back, the lump it formed under her shirt. He tried to shout a warning, but couldn't, and Willow was careful to keep her back facing away from her friends.

Buffy frowned. "Hey, where's Giles? I know he won't wanna miss this."

"He said to get started. He'll be by as soon as possible."

Had Willow been there? Was it she who had released the thing into his library? She must know that the creature had him.

"So, okay! Get started, Buffy! Dissect it or something." Xander stuffed the blade into her hand.

She took it reluctantly. "Me? Why do _I_ have to dissect it?"

"Uh, because you're the Slayer?"

"And I slayed! My work here is done." She dropped the knife.

"Oh, no, I almost _ate_ one of those things. I think I've fulfilled my gross-out quota for the decade."

"Guys…" Exasperated, Willow took the scalpel and started the dissection.

"Do we even know what to look for?" Xander asked, "I mean, how are we supposed to figure out what this thing is?"

"Turn it over." Buffy suggested. "Maybe we missed its ID bracelet."

"So, now I guess, uh, we know what happened to Mr. Whitmore."

"He saw this and ran away?" Cordelia asked.

"Try best case scenario."

"It's possible that Mr. Whitmore wasn't harmed. Maybe the offspring simply used him to return to the mother bezoar." Willow said, her voice now cold and distant.

Giles frowned.

"Yeah maybe he…" Xander blinked. "What?"

Cordelia picked up a metal baseball bat. Just then, Giles saw that her teddy bear backpack's eye had popped out, and a tentacle stretched from the eye.

"What's a bez…"

Cordelia slammed Buffy in the face with the bat, and she crumpled.

_Buffy!!!! No!!!_

"Cordy! What…"

Willow hit Xander, and he crumpled as well. All was dark.

************************************************************************

"Buffy?"

Giles attention perked. For the last few hours, the egg had done nothing but wander around the library, flip through a few books. He had been bored out of his mind… no pun intended, and this was the first interesting thing that had happened.

Joyce Summers entered the library and looked around, confused.

"Hello?"

Egg-Giles poked his head out of the cage. "Hello?"

"Oh! Mr. Giles, hi. Uh, I-I was looking for Buffy. She, she was supposed to wait for me here."

_She was? _

"Well, sh-she hasn't been in. I-I've been waiting to talk to her myself about, uh, uh... h-history texts." Egg-Giles said with a shrug.

"That is just the last straw!"

Giles frowned. "I-I'm sure she didn't mean to, uh…"

"She never means to, but somehow she always manages to anyway. Do you have children, Mr. Giles?"

"Um…"

"Sh-should I be whispering?"

"No. A-a-and, uh, no, I, I haven't any children. A-although, uh, sometimes I feel as though I do, uh, working here…"

"They an be such a... Joyce paused, considering. "I don't want to say 'burden', but, uh... Uh, actually I kind of _do_ want to say 'burden'!"

Giles smiled outwardly and said, "Feel free!" On the inside though, he was pondering. What would Buffy be like if she didn't have the burden of being a slayer? Would she be so much trouble for her mother? If only Joyce _knew. _Of course, Buffy probably thought that a billion times a day.

"Oh, they're just so irresponsible."

"Sometimes."

Joyce noticed some of his books, "'Bristow's Demon Index', 'Hell's Offspring'?"

Giles scooped up the books. "A hobby of mine, uh, but, uh, having nothing to do with Buffy in any way."

He stored the books in the cage and returned.

"Um, you say Buffy told you that she'd be here all afternoon?"

"Well, yes. I-i-is something wrong?"

"Oh, I'm sure it's nothing."" Egg-Giles pulled open a drawer and Giles inwardly gasped in horror when he saw the egg creature inside, waiting. He tried to speak, to warn Joyce, but couldn't. "What was that?"

"Mm, probably the janitor." Joyce says, turning towards the door. Egg-Giles scooped up the creature and put it on her back, and Giles watched helplessly as Joyce scream and crumpled to the floor.

***********************************************************************

Giles was walking into a dark hole underneath the school. And now he was leading Buffy's mother and a whole hoard of students into the darkness, down a tunnel, and out into another underground room. He had long since given up trying to gain control of his body and his actions.

As he watched passively, Egg Giles wandered to a side ramp and accepted a crowbar from Mr. Witmore, the health teacher who had started the project in the first place. The man had a box of eggs under one arm.

Cordelia was there, cleaning eggs, as was Willow, pounding on the floor with a large hammer. Buffy and Xander were nowhere to be seen.

As the students, teachers and Joyce pounded on the floor, breaking it into smaller pieces, eggs surfaced beneath the stone. They were passed to Cordelia, who cleaned the eggs and handed it to Mr. Whitmore, who put in his box of eggs. Underneath the floor, a large pink mother bezoar could be seen, her body throbbing.

Giles glanced up from his work slightly to see Jonathon, another student, enter with tools and get to work. Then he saw something behind the boy that made his gasp in surprise and look away.

Buffy and Xander were in the doorway, peering around the edge of the door. Egg-Giles didn't seem to have noticed yet, but Giles watched them carefully from the corner of his eye.

The two had obviously not been affected by the eggs yet, their eyes were clear and their movements loose and easy.

"What are they diggin' up?" Xander was whispering.

"Oh boy." Buffy muttered, not answering his question. It was clear she had figured it out, though, her eyes were on the mother bezoar.

"We can't let them spread those eggs." She added.

Xander nodded. "I'll handle it. Um, can you, uh, hold down the fort?"

"I'm gonna need a weapon. I'm gonna need a _big_ weapon.

"Yeah."

Buffy walked back through the tunnel, theoretically to search for a weapon, and Xander shook himself off slightly and tried to make himself look like the other affected students. His eyes went blank, and when he stepped from the wall his movements were stiff and zombie-like. Giles winced internally. A brilliant actor he wasn't.

Xander walked up to Giles and held out his hands. Egg-Giles passed the boy a piece of concrete, which he grabbed and tossed to the side. Then he spotted Cordelia moving away with a box of eggs. Instantly, he followed.

Buffy stepped back into the room, carrying a large piece of pipe. Before she could get very far, the Gorch brothers moved up behind her.

"I told you this weren't over." Lyle, the first one she had met, snarled.

"She's so cute. And little. Think we can keep her?" his brother, Tector, asked.

"Guys, this really isn't a great time." Buffy began, but before she could say anything else, Lyle sneered at her and said,

"Oh, its gonna be."

Without another hesitation, Buffy gammed the pipe into their faces, then pulled it back and slammed it into Lyle's gut. Tector punched her, and she stumbled back before kicking him in the chest, causing him to fly back into the metal shelves.

At this point, they were going back towards the tunnel, and Giles almost lost sight of her. It was at that point that Buffy spotted her mother. Forgetting about her opponents, she moved forward again.

"Mom?"

Joyce and Willow looked up at her. Their expressions didn't change.

"Kill her." Willow said. Buffy's eyes widened.

The students began to move towards Buffy and Lyle. Buffy kicked two down with a roundhouse kick, and at the same time Lyle ducked a shovel, then got hit with another and fell to the floor. Buffy kicked down more students.

Then Egg-Giles tried to get into the fight.

Giles watched helplessly as his body swung his crowbar at her. Luckily, Egg-Giles was not very coordinated, and he missed and stumbled into the wall behind the girl when she sidestepped.

Lyle was on his feet again, punching one student and bodily throwing another. Buffy pushed one boy away from her and kicked him in the head. Then Giles came at her again. He caught one glimpse of her eyes, wide and upset, before she grabbed his arms and pushed him into another student. She didn't try to punch or kick him, just moved him away from her.

Lyle tossed another student aside, "What the hell is goin' on?!"

Buffy shrugged. "Long story."

Since all the students had been momentarily pushed back, Lyle turned back to Buffy and took a swing. She ducked and punched him. Again, he tried to hit her, and she ducked and kicked him hard. Then the students came back and both turned to fight them off.

Lyle is hit by a students and stumbled into the wall. Buffy kicks yet another away from her. Finally, Tector appears again at the mouth of the tunnel.

"Well, alright!" He cried, rubbing his hand together.

Then he noticed the mother Bezoar. He wandered over to the edge and looked in.

"Well, looky there!"

The mother opened one giant eye and stared at him.

Tector smiled. "Well, hello!"

The Bezoar paused, then reached up a tentacle and wrapped it around his neck. Tector began to choke, and struggled to escape, to no avail. He fall in as Lyle and Buffy watched.

"TECTOR!" Lyle cried. "Tector?"

The bezoar burped, and Lyle rounded on Buffy.

"This is all _your_ fault!"

"How?"

Lyle flipped her onto her back, and Joyce came out of nowhere, swinging her pickaxe. Rolling out of the way, Buffy's feet ended up too close to the edge of the bezoar's hole. Instantly, the tentacle reached out, and wrapped around Buffy's ankle, pulling her towards it.

_No! _Fear rose up in Giles so powerfully that he began to feel the bezoar's hold on him breaking. He strained against it, desperate to get to Buffy, but before he could, her hand latched out and snatched the pickaxe, and then she was gone.

_NO! _Far from giving up, Giles struggled harder against the Egg Creature, determined to dive into that whole after her. And just as the beasts hold on him started to drop, there came the sounds of fighting from within the hole. The entire room was outwardly still and silent except for those sounds, and the inward struggle Giles was waging.

The bezoar screamed.

As the great monsters eyes closed, all the Egg-Creatures dropped off their hosts, who all crumpled to the floor, unconscious. Giles fell, but he had felt his egg creature fall off milliseconds before the others… somehow, he had managed to break it. He was weakened, but remained conscious.

Without warning, a pickaxe came flying out of the hole.

_Buffy? _Was it possible she was okay?

Then a hand, covered in slime, exited the pit, and Buffy hauled herself up and out. Shakily, the girl managed to stand and face Lyle, who remained watching the events in disbelief.

Lyle nodded and topped his hat at her, still appearing bewildered, "Alright. Its over."

He ran, and Buffy stared after him, expressionless.

"Buffy…"

Buffy's eyes widened, and her head wiped around to look at him. "Giles? Is it…" She took a hesitant step towards him. "Are you really Giles? Or Freaky-Egg Giles?"

Unsteadily, Giles hauled himself off the floor, "If that thing was still on me… I wouldn't be able to say your name."

She smiled, eyes dancing, and launched herself into his arms, locking her arms around his neck and burying her face into his chest.

Giles stumbled back slightly, then regained his balance and wrapped his arms around Buffy just as she stiffened, realizing what she had done. She tried to pull back.

"Giles, I'm sorry…"

"Oh, God, Buffy I thought you were dead."

His arms tightened around her again, refusing to let her leave.

Buffy smiled slightly and rested her head against him once more. But she only let herself revel in the feeling for a moment. She had no idea what this meant. This could mean a dramatic change in their relationship… or it could mean that Giles was a good and caring Watcher, concerned about his charge.

She sighed and pulled back, and this time Giles let her.

"My mom and the others will wake up soon." She said, looking away from him, "we should think up something to tell them."

He nodded, turning his head in an attempt to meet her eyes. When she looked away again, he put his hand to her chin and lifted her face, staring into those beautiful green eyes.

"Meet me in the library after everything is sorted out? I need to talk to you."

She nodded.

******

Close to an hour later, students were stumbling out of the school building into the cool evening air, looking dirty and confused. Giles was trying to convince everyone that it was a gas leak, even as he wandered over to Xander, Willow and Cordelia. He was pretty sure he knew what had happened, but he knew that Xander and Buffy had gone through his books… they probably knew more about what had actually happened them him, which was rare.

As police and fire trucks started to arrive, Giles rose his voice over the noise.

"Yes, yes, uh, i-i-it was a-a, a gas leak, everyone. Uh, well, just, uh, get some air, and a... good night's rest, you know, uh, you'll be fine. These gas things... will happen." He had finally reached the others, so he asked Giles, "What was it really?"

"Stick with the gas thing. I'll fill you in tomorrow."

_Tomorrow. If everything went well, his life would change forever. His tomorrows would never be the same… _

"Right."

He wandered back towards the library to wait for Buffy.

Buffy, meanwhile, was looking for her mother when she too, ran into Xander. She had cleaned up and changed.

"How is she?" She asked him.

"She's a bit confused, but it's goin' around."

He nodded to where Joyce was standing, and Buffy walked over to her. Buffy clasped her mother's hands.

"Are you okay?

"Buffy, I was worried you'd gotten caught in the building. There, there was a gas leak."

"Uh, yeah, I-I just heard. I was in the gym."

"I went looking for you in the library."

"Oh, well, I was on my way there, when I…"

Joyce frowned at her. "I thought I made it pretty clear that you weren't to leave the library till I came."

"The other side of that is there was a gas leak, and…"

"Well, I'm not really interested in the other side right now. Young lady, you have to learn some responsibility, okay? Once and for all."

"I'm grounded?"

"You're already grounded."

"Oh, yeah."

Joyce stopped walking. "Until further notice you are confined to your

room. You will not leave your room at any time except to go to school or the bathroom. Am I making myself clear?"

"You're clear. I won't leave my room."

"You're damn right, you won't."

Buffy stopped walking suddenly and said, "Mom… I left something in the library when I dropped by this morning. I'll meet you in the car okay?"

Joyce was too angry to wonder why the library would still be open and accessible after a gas leak. She just waved her hand to acknowledge the comment and stalked towards her car.

*******

Buffy hesitated outside the door to the library, unsure she could muster up the courage to step inside. What was she going to do? What was he going to say?

She shook her head suddenly, roughly. Her mind had been filled with confused, worried thoughts for a couple of days now. Or, if she were to be truly honest with herself, ever since she had first stared into his hazel eyes…

Whatever Giles wanted to talk to her about, she had to tell him how she felt. She couldn't spend the rest of her life stressing about this.

Determinedly, she pushed the door open and stepped into the library.

He was waiting there for her, leaning against the table, facing the doors as he waited for her to enter. When she finally did, he did not move, didn't react at all except to lock eyes with her.

That seemed like enough. There was enough force in the meeting of their eyes to send a wave of heat crashing over her, to cause her knees to feel weak and her head light. She didn't move either, fearing she might fall if she tried.

Then Giles straightened, and as he walked towards her, her muscles somehow found the strength to work, she somehow found the courage to meet him half way.

When he didn't speak, Buffy whispered, "What did you want to talk to me about?"

Giles closed his eyes briefly, then opened them and said, "Buffy, I can't think of a simple or easy way to say this. I've been your Watcher now for over a year, and every moment of our time together I have spent…" He took a deep breath and said, quickly, "hopelessly in love with you."

Buffy was dazzled. She was so stunned, so wonderfully, perfectly overjoyed, that for a minute she couldn't find the words to say. Giles face, in the meantime, fell slightly, and he glanced away from her again.

"I know what you're thinking. I'm too old for you. I'm your teacher, your watcher. I'm twice as old as you are, Buffy, and if this works out you'd hate me one day for being old and lethargic while you are still young and beautiful. I'm sorry -"

She reached up and put her hand over his mouth.

"Giles, please, stop. Don't apologize." She took a deep breath, just as he had, needing the air, "I don't care that you're twice as old as me. Up until a couple of days ago I was dating a man who was over 200 years old! Facing a feature of being, as you said, "old and lethargic", while he would remain "young and beautiful forever." But there's a difference here. You…You will always be beautiful to me. I love you, too."

She had no idea where the words came from. She was no poet, she had never been good at sounding eloquent. But somehow, she had managed to say the right thing. Tears filled her eyes and Giles' own vision blurred, and he kissed her, gently. They still had a lot to work out, but for now, for this one perfect moment, they were simply together.


	12. Chapter 12

Episode 12 of _What Was Giles Thinking_, this is "Phases"

********************************************************

_In every generation there is a Chosen One. She alone will stand against the vampires, the demons and the forces of darkness. She is the Slayer._

It was 7 in the morning when Buffy slipped inside the school building and walked down the long, dark and empty halls towards the library, her head in the clouds and a happy, distracted smile plastered on her face.

She was thinking about Giles, who she was now going in to meet. It was three weeks after they had shared their first - and only - kiss, and for the last two weeks Buffy had been coming into the library every morning to be with Giles, to hang out. Her mother thought she was crazy, especially when Buffy said she was working on a project that she really wanted to get a good mark on.

Buffy's face fell slightly as she thought about her mornings with Giles. They would hang out, research the newest vampire phenomon, watch movies, and generally hang out, just like regular couples did. Giles had even been helping her with her school work, and her marks had gone up since they had first started 'dating'. The only thing they didn't do like regular couples was kiss.

They could hug, they could sit next to each other on the couch with Giles' arm around her shoulder. Sometimes Giles even pulled her onto his lap and wrapped his arms around her while they were watching a movie together. But Giles was insistent that their relationship couldn't progress until she'd graduated. Basically until it was legal. It made her pouty but she knew he was right.

Plus it wasn't as if she didn't sneak in the occasional kiss anyway.

Good mood restored, Buffy's smile returned and her step grew lighter as she turned and continued down the twisting halls. Her friends thought she was crazy as well, she mused as she walked. They knew she hadn't seen Angel in exactly three weeks, and she tried to act depressed about that whenever she saw them... after all, they didn't know about Giles. But sometimes they caught her smiling, or daydreaming, as she was now, with a dopey look on her face, and tried in vain to figure out why she was so happy.

Having finally reached the library, Buffy pushed open the door and instantly found herself wrapped in Giles arms and whirled around. Buffy laughed, loving the more playful side of Giles that he had been revealing recently, and pushed him lightly away as he settled her back on her feet.

"You're late." Giles complained with a mock stern look.

Buffy glanced at the clock. 7:05. She raised an eyebrow and he only grinned and hugged her again.

"So, what's on the agenda for today?" Buffy asked chirpily, swinging away from him to dump her bag on the table.

"Well I think we've already watched all the DVD's I own." Giles pointed out.

Buffy rolled her eyes. "I'm not surprised."

"So I thought we'd do something different today." When Buffy narrowed her eyes suspiciously at him, he said, "I want to teach you how to dance."

Buffy's eyebrows shot up. That she had not expected. "Why?"

"Because you don't seem like the dancer type to me. I figure I have about a year and a half to teach you how to dance properly before your prom. I don't know...it'll be cutting it close. But I might be able to perform a miracle."

Buffy punched him lightly on the arm. "Is that a challenge? Come on, really, why?"

He smiled, "I thought it would be fun."

Giles grabbed her, placing one hand on her waist and clasping her opposite hand with his other, and pulled her up against him. Their faces were so close as he spun her around that their breath mingled. Buffy leaned in closer and whispered against his mouth, "You're right. This is fun."

Giles closed his eyes briefly. "Buffy..."

She pulled her head back, "I know,I know, no fun for Buffy..."

He scowled, almost comically. "Do you think I like having to wait over a year to kiss you properly?It gives you too much time to change your mind, I think."

Buffy frowned. "Don't talk like that. You are amazing."

He smiled at her.

To restore the good mood, Buffy quipped, "I have the feeling everything's going to be very _proper _with you around. We have to dance _properly, _kiss _properly..."_

Giles laughed and spun her yet again, then whisked her around in an improvized waltz. Buffy tried to follow his steps, using her gymnastics experience to keep her footsteps light and quick.

"Well I couldn't have you dancing like you do at the Bronze at your own prom." He replied.

"Why? Don't you like it."

He frowned, trying to look disapproving, "That's the problem."

Giles spun her one last time, then dipped her onto his arm.

Staring up into his face, Buffy whispered, "Aren't you supposed to kiss me now?"

"Have this instead." He pulled a rose out of his sleeve and placed it between her teeth.

Buffy rolled her eyes and straightened again, taking the rose out of her mouth. "What do you know, I'm learned all sorts of things these past couple of weeks that I thought impossible before. I mean, I may even have to start believing in Leprecauns, if Rupert Giles is going to go around being funny and sweet and romantic."

Giles grinned mischeviously and moved up behind her, scooping her up into his arms like a child. Buffy shrieked and laughed, pretending to struggle.

"Giles, what are you doing? Let me go!" She was laughing too hard to speak properly, and Giles was smiling down into her face, so she was content to just lie there and stare up at him for a while. He seemed to get distracted from his original plan as he looked down at her.

Then he blinked and looked away, walking purposefully to the back room, where the TV was set up.

"I lied about not having any more movies. I want you to see the classics."

Buffy raised a brow. "I thought we already did."

Giles rolled his eyes, "Sorry, forgetting that for you _the Sound of Music, Flipper _and _G-Men _are classics for you. No I meant the _real _classics, like _Casablanca_, _citizen Kane _and _To Kill a Mockingbird." _

"You're not _that _much older then me."

"No, but you should still get equainted with the good stuff."

As Giles settled onto the couch, hugging her close to his chest, Buffy pressed her nose into his shirt and wondered at the simple joy of being together, being silly, having fun.

What could possibly go wrong?

************************************************************************

After watching _Casablanca,_ Buffy had slipped out of the back of the library and around to the front of the school, pretending as if she had just arrived along with everyone else.

She entered the school and saw Willow and Oz standing not far from the trophy case, facing each other. Oz's back was turned to her, but Buffy could tell by Willow's expression that the conversation was an awkward one. Then Willow saw Buffy and pointed at her, said a few more words to Oz, then ducked down the hall towards her.

"So," Buffy teased as they walked down the Hall, "How far have you and the mysterious Oz gotten?"

"Nowhere. I mean, he said he was gonna wait until I was ready, but I'm ready. Honest. I'm good to go here."

"Well, I think it's nice that he's not just being an animal." Buffy pointed out.

"It is nice. He's great. We have a lot of fun. But I want smoochies!"

_Me too_. Buffy thought with a pout. Then she blinked herself out of it and said, "Have you dropped any hints?"

"I've dropped anvils." The girl complained.

"Ah, he'll come around. What guy could resist your wily Willow charms?"

"At last count, all of them. Maybe more."

Buffy sniffed, "Well, none of them know a thing. They all get an 'F' in Willow."

"But I want Oz to get an 'A', and, oh, one of those gold stars."

They had wandered out to the courtyard, so they sat on one of the benches.

"He will." Buffy assured her.

"Well, he better hurry. I don't want to be the only girl in school without a real boyfriend."

Buffy pouted again. Technically, she didn't have a real boyfriend either. They hadn't defined themselves as a couple, and Giles wouldn't _kiss her, _dammit.

Buffy looked up to realize Willow was looking at her sympathetically, "Oh, I'm such an idiot. I'm sorry. I-I shouldn't even be talking about... Do you want me to go away?"

Buffy froze, thinking Willow might know about Giles. Then she realized Will thought they were talking about Angel.

"I wish you wouldn't." Buffy replied belatedly.

"How are you holding up anyway?"

"I'm holding." She tried to think of something that sounded approprietly lovesick. "I was going on two minutes there without thinking about Angel."

"Well, there you go."

"But I would do a lot better if you and Xander and I could do that 'sharing our misery' thing tonight."

"Great. I'll give Xander a call. What's his number? Oh, yeah, 1-800-I'm-Dating-A-Skanky-Ho." Willow rolled her eyes.

Buffy's eyebrows rose in surprise and she gave a startled laugh. "Meow!"

Willow smiled, pleased. "Really? Thanks. I've never gotten a 'meow' before."

"Well-deserved."

"Darn tootin'. I'm just saying Xander and Cordelia? I mean, what does he see in her anyway?"

************************************************************************

The next day, Xander proudly showed off the giant gaping hole in the car roof of Cordelia's father's car to Willow, Buffy and Oz. Cordelia stood next to him, looking horrified.

"And you're sure it was a werewolf?" Buffy asked, hoping off from the car - where she had climbed up to get a better look - and landed on the ground below.

"Well, let's see," Xander said, pretending to think. "um, six feet tall, claws, a big old snout in the middle of his face like a wolf. Um, yeah, I'm sticking with my first guess."

"Seems wise." Oz commented.

"Oh, oh, and then there was that little thing where it tried to bite us."

Cordelia put her head on Xander's shoulder. "It was so awful."

"I know." He crooned, wrapping an arm around her.

Cordelia pulled away. "Daddy just had this car detailed."

Giles showed up next to Buffy with a newspaper. They shared a small, secret smile before Buffy asked,

"So what's the word?"

"Well, it seems there were a, a number of other attacks by a wild

dog around town." He handed her the paper. "Several animal carcasses

were found mutilated."

"You mean, like bunnies and stuff?" Willow turned to Oz, upset, "No, don't tell me."

Oz smiled at her, reassuringly. "Oh, don't worry. I mean, they might not look it, but bunnies can really take care of themselves."

Willow calmed and smiled back. "Yeah."

"Yeah."

Giles took the paper back. "Yes, uh, um, fortunately, no people were injured."

"That falls into the 'that's a switch' column." Buffy said.

"Well, for now. But my guess is that this werewolf will be back at next month's full moon."

"What about tonight's full moon?" Willow asked.

Giles looked at Willow, confused. "Pardon?"

Out of the corner of his eye, Giles saw Buffy staring at him in disbelief, and knew what she was thinking. _Willow knows something Giles doesn't???_ He could almost hear the little camera clicks going off in her brain as she recorded the memory forever. He rolled his eyes at her and she laughed silently.

"Well, last night was the night before the full moon," Willow explained, " traditionally known as... 'the night before the full moon.'"

"Meaning the accepted legend that werewolves only prowl during a full moon might be erroneous." Giles said.

"Or it could be a crock." Cordelia added.

"Unless the werewolf was using last year's almanac." Xander said with a grin.

Buffy smiled. "Looks like Giles has some schooling to do."

Buffy could tell that Giles barely heard her. He was already lost in his own mind. "Yes, I must admit I, I am intrigued. Werewolves, it's... it's one of the classics." He started to walk away. "I, I'm sure my books and I are in for a fascinating afternoon."

The four friends watched him go, amused.

"He needs to get a pet." Buffy said outloud, then got so lost in the possibility that she didn't near anyones response.

************************************************************************

That day in gym, Buffy and Willow, along with the other students in the class, were taking lessons in self defense. Buffy of course, wasn't really listening. She was actually stuck on what she had said earlier. She'd said it lightly, as a joke, that Giles should get a pet. But she found she liked the idea. She wanted to get a pet for him.

But what was the perfect pet for Giles? Not a fish, they were too boring and we're really solvers of the lonely problem, which was the whole point. Dogs were probably too entergetic, and cats... well Giles seemed like the kind of guy who would be allergic to cats. How to find out though?

Willow nudged her, and Buffy refocused in time to hear the coach say,

"Sunnydale is becoming more dangerous all the time. And a full moon like tonight tends to bring out the crazies, but with some simple basics of self-defense each of you can learn how to protect yourself."

Buffy smiled and whispered to Willow, "Here's a suggestion: move away from the Hellmouth."

Willow smiled at Buffy, then looked behind her curiously when Oz reached up and tugged a loose tag back into her sweater.

"Tag." He explained, patting her back as if to seal the tag in there.

Willow and Buffy exchanged another smile.

Willow smiles at Buffy. Cut to Xander and Cordelia.

From across the room, Xander scowled at Oz.

"Would you look at that? He's all over her."

Cordelia glanced over.

Xander leaned forward and hissed, "Psst! Hey, buddy, this is a public forum here."

Cordelia rolled her eyes. "I think you splashed on just a little too much 'Obsession For Dorks'."

"By being prepared, you have the power." The coach said, "Okay, everyone get into your assigned groups."

The students go down to check the sheet, and Xander sees that Larry - resident school bully and womanizer- has his arm in a bandage.

"What happened?"

"Oh, last week some huge dog jumped out of the bushes and bit -nine stitches. They oughta shoot those strays."

Oz appeared next to Larry and said, "I've been there, man." He held up a finger. "My cousin Jordy just got his grownup teeth in? Does not like to be tickled."

Xander laughed, and Larry scowled at them, disgruntled, before moving over to his group member, Theresa, who is stretching. Larry leans over and whispers in her ear,

"Theresa! Be still my shorts. We're in the same group.I may have to attack you."

Theresa paled slightly. "No, a-a-actually, I think, uh, in our group there are a few of us."

Buffy bounced up next to Theresa and turned a threating look to Larry. "And I'm one of the few."

Before Larry can react, Willow appeared and pulled Buffy away. as she

"Don't forget," Willow lectured, "you're supposed to be a meek little girlie-girl like the rest of us."

Then she walked off.

Buffy scowled at Larry. "Spoil my fun."

A few minutes later everyone had partners, and was lined up in two rows, girls in front, boys in back.

"Okay, everyone, listen up." The coach said, "I wanna show you what to do should you be attacked from behind." She walked over to Buffy and Larry. "In this situation, bend forward, using your back and shoulders." She pressed buffy down to demonstrate, "to flip the assailant over to the ground."

As everyone else tried to copy that and flip their partners, Buffy made a show of giving weak pulls on Larry's arm, grunting for effect. Willow smiled proudly at her and nodded.

Buffy threw in another pathetic grint, and Larry grinned behind her.

"Oh, Summers, you are turning me on."

He reached around with her free hand and grabbed her ass. Instantly, Buffy slipped him over, hard, onto the mat in front of them. Larry moaned painfully, and the coach and Willow both shoot Buffy a Look.

Oz is grinning. "That works, too."

************************************************************************

Later, in the library, Giles was giving one of his customary Monster Lectures, demonstrating the phases of the moon using his globe with a small moon attachment.

"And, uh, while there's absolutely no scientific explanation for lunar effect on the human psyche, uh, the phases of the moon, uh, do seem to exert a great deal of psychological influence. And th-the full moon is, is, seems to bring out our darkest qualities."

"And yet, ironically, uh, led to the invention of the moon pie."

Giles paused. "Oh..." Then he laughed. "Yes, the moon pie." He laughed again, and Buffy and Willow gave him a look. Willow because he was acting crazy, Buffy because she knew half of his public display was a show. Eyes dancing, Giles stopped laughing and said in a serious tone, "Y-you see, uh, the-the werewolf, uh, is such a, a potent e-e-extreme representation of our inborn animalistic traits that it e-emerges for three full consecutive nights: the full moon and, uh, the two nights surrounding it."

"Quite the party animal." Xander commented.

"Quite. And it, uh, acts on-on pure instinct. No conscience, uh, uh, predatory and, and aggressive."

"In other words, your typical male." Buffy said with a grin.

"On behalf of my gender, hey." Xander protested.

Giles frowned at her too. "Yes, let's not jump to any conclusions."

"I didn't jump. I took a tiny step, and there conclusions were."

Giles rolled his eyes. "The point is that our wolfman could also be a-a-a wolfwoman, or-or anyone who was bitten by a werewolf."

"So then I'm guessing your standard silver bullets are in order here?"

"No. No bullets. No matter who this werewolf is, i-it's still a human being, who may be completely unaware of his or her condition."

"So tonight we bring 'em back alive."

************************************************************************

That night, Buffy and Giles were alone in the park, walking in a secluded area, flickering their flashlights around in the dense trees and along the few parked cars.

Buffy walked up to Giles from the row of cars and he asked, "Anything yet?"

"Yes. And you won't believe what I saw. Brittany Podell was making out with Owen Stadeel, but he goes with Barrett Williams." Giles gave her a look. "If she ever found... No, um, no, no sign of the werewolf. How about you?"

"Uh, the same." He glanced around. "I thought we might, uh... I thought

we might knock on a few windows, uh, ask if anyone has seen anything yet."

Buffy rolled her eyes. "Giles, no one's seen anything."

"Oh, yes. No, of-of-of course not, no. Yes."

She grinned. "You know, it could be us in one of those cars if you weren't so stubborn."

He grinned at her and kissed the tip of her nose. "Soon, Buffy."

Then he turned away and moved off to continue looking.

She stared after him for a moment before going off on her own into the trees.

Her flashlight beam cut around in the darkness, and she found a small clearing, which she stepped into. Suddenly there was a loud noise, like a larch releaseing, and she yelped as she felt herself being yanked up into a net. A man in hunter gear leapt out of the trees and pointed his gun at her.

"Gotcha!" Then the man paused, "What the hell?"

"Giles!" Buffy squirmed in her net, trying to move away from the gun. She hated guns. "Giles!"

Giles came running. "Hey!" Then he saw the gun and put his hands up. "Whoa!"

"Hands are good right about there." The man sneered.

"Who, who are you? What are you doing?" Giles cried.

"The name's Cain. I'm the one with the gun, which means I'm the one who gets to do the interviewing."

Buffy spoke up, "Ahem. Hey, before we get all chummy here, how about we do something about me being in this net thing?"

Cain sighed, leaned his gun against a rock and pulled out a knife, slicing Buffy down. She hit the ground hard and Giles instantly reached down to untangle her.

"You alright?" He asked, checking her for injuries.

"Yeah." She stood, and moved slightly closer to Giles.

"Gotta say, I'm impressed." Cain said.

"Excuse me?" Giles' voice was suddenly colder then Buffy had ever heard it.

"Well, it's good to get the fruit while it's fresh."

"You'd be wise to take that back."

"Hey, what a man and a girl do in lovers' lane at night is nobody's busi..."

Giles instantly started towards Cain, his hazel eyes dark and furious, but Buffy grabbed his arm and pulled him back to her.

"Oh, okay, hey, enough. It's not what you think. We're hunting werewolves."

Cain laughd.

"Okay, it's funny if you don't believe in werewolves." Buffy admitted.

"No, it's funny thinking about you two catching one." Cain said, "I mean, this guy looks like he's auditioning to be a librarian, and, you, well, you're a girl."

"I assure you she's quite capable." Giles insisted.

"Uh-huh. Lemme ask you something, sweetheart. Exactly how many of these animals have you taken out?"

Buffy frowned. "As of today?"

"I tore a tooth from the mouth of every werewolf that I killed." He held up a tooth necklace. "This next one will bring the total to an even dozen."

Buffy looked at him, appalled. "So you're just gonna kill it?"

"Well, see, that's the thing. Their pelts fetch a pretty penny in Sri Lanka, and it's a little hard to skin 'em when they're alive."

Giles was equally as shocked. "Y-you hunt werewolves f-for sport?"

"No, no, I'm in it purely for the money."

"And it doesn't bother you that a werewolf is a person twenty-eight days out of the month?"

"That's why I only hunt 'em the other three. I'd really love to stay and chat, but I'm on a tight schedule. Any idea where else the boys and girls like to get together around here?"

"You're looking for a party?"

"No, but the werewolf is. They're suckers for that whole sexual heat thing. Sense it miles away. Since this little doggie ain't here, I guess he found another place."

Buffy shrugged. "Sorry. Wish I could help you."

"But you don't know squat?" He shook his head, "Gee, what a surprise."

When he left, Buffy turned and headed back towards the car.

"Where are we going?" Giles asked.

"I think I know where to look. We just have to make it there before mein furrier."

******************************************************************************

Meanwhile, in another part of town Theresa walk walking home. She passed a house that had a tall fence and an overabundance of weeds, and even as she walked by she heard some rustling. She stopped, looked around, and heard nothing more, so she continued. At the corner, Theresa turned and continued along the same fence. Again, she heard a rusting, and this time, when she stopped, a low growl.

Terrified, Theresa turns back around to run and slams into Angel's chest, screams.

"Everything okay?" Angel is holding a daisy in his fingers, and twirls it. He does not seem like Angel though. His voice is cold, his face dark.

"Yeah, I just, uh, I, I thought I heard something... behind me."

He walked around her in a circle, apparently looking behind her.

"No one there."

"Oh. I guess I was wrong. I could have sworn that..."

"It's okay. It can get pretty scary out here, all alone at night."

"Yeah."

"Hey, don't I know you from somewhere? Don't you go to school with Buffy?"

Theresa smiled. "Oh, you know Buffy?"

Angel laughed softly. "Yes, I do, very well."

"Oh."

"Come on, I'll get you home."

And Angel began to walk her home.

******************************************************************************

Giles and Buffy pulled up to the Bronze fifteen minutes later to see people fleeing through the large double doors.

"Looks as though your hunch was right." Giles said.

"Who could resist Sunnydale's own house of hormones?"

She jumped out of the car and instantly ran into Willow.

"The werewolf, it's in there."

Buffy nodded briefly, then shot around and through the door into the Bronze just before the door is shut by the bouncer.

"Coming through!"

Inside, the Bronze is trashed. Tables and chairs are upturned, and people have spilled drinks and snacks in their urgency to escape. As Buffy moved further into the room she spotted a shadow behind a bead curtain and moved towards her, taking off her backpack as she moved and pulling out a chain.

Buffy steps onto the stage and walks past the drums. Then the werewolf omes out from behind the curtains, snarling. Bufy spins and drops her bag, then unravels a length of chain and uses it as a lasso around the werewolves neck. As it struggles and yanks at the chain, it pulls Buffy into the drums and gets the chain loose. Instantly, the werewolf crashes though a window and runs out into the night.

Later, the employees of the Bronze have returned and began to pick up the mess. Buffy packed away her chain, her expression defeated.

Suddenly, Cain walked up to her from nowhere. "You let it get away."

Buffy scowled. "I didn't let it do anything. I had the chain around its neck."

"Chain? What were you gonna do, take it for a walk?"

"I was going to lock it up.

"That's beautiful." He approached her. "This is what happens when a woman tries to do a man's job.

Trying to ingore him, Buffy stood and slipped on her bag. Then Giles walked up from behind Cain.

"Now, you look here, Mr. Cain. This girl risked her life trying to capture a beast that you haven't as yet been able to find."

"Uh-huh. And Daddy's doing a great job carrying her bag of milk bones."

Giles threw his bag to the ground, but seemed to restrain himself from hitting Cain.

"You know, sis, if that thing out there harms anyone, it's going to be on your pretty little head. I hope you can live with that."

Buffy stared at him with blank green eyes. "I live with that every day."

Cain shook his head at her. "First they tell me I can't hunt an elephant for

its ivory...Now I've gotta deal with People for the Ethical Treatment of Werewolves."

As he left, Giles muttered under his breath, "Pillock! Right, lets move out."

They shouldered their bags and left the Bronze.

He grabs his bag and goes. Buffy follows right behind.

******************************************************************************

Later, Buffy and Giles were in the park again, and Buffy came walking up to Giles car.

"Giles?"

No one appeared to be inside. Terrified, Buffy ran up to the car.

"Giles!"

She ran up to the window and peered inside to see Giles sleeping inside. He awoke at the sound of her shout and sat up with a groan.

"I didn't see you there. I thought something had happened."

Giles looked at her worried face and smiled reassuringly. "Oh, no, I'm, uh..."

Buffy got in the passenger seat.

Giles yawned. "I'm okay. I'm just, um, fine... uh, just, uh, I'm, uh.... Uh, any sign of the, uh, werewolf?"

"No. I'm guessing you didn't see anything either from that vantage point of having your eyes closed."

"It's, uh, it's, it's, uh, gonna be light soon, so we'd better..."

"Wait."

Buffy was listening to the news on the radio, and she reached over to turn up the volume a bit.

"Police say that the incident was apparently connected to the animal mutilation which occurred two nights ago. The coroner's office has identified the body as that of Sunnydale High School student Theresa Klusmeyer, age seventeen. The authorities ask that anyone with further information..."

Buffy's face crumbled slightly, and Giles reached over and pulled her against him.

"Buffy, we're gonna get this thing. We have another whole night."

She looked up at him with misty eyes.

Giles sighed. "There's nothing more we can do now. It's nearly sunrise. That werewolf won't be a werewolf much longer."

She looked away, sadly.

******************************************************************************

Meanwhile, at the top of a hill overlooking Sunnydale,a werewolf is seen sleeping on the ground. As soon as the sunlight touches its fur, the fur begins to melt away, and Oz takes the werewolf's place, resting against a log. When Oz opens his eyes, he sits up and takes in his situation.

"Huh."

******************************************************************************

Inside the library later that day, Buffy is pacing anxiously though the library, Giles and Willow are sitting at the table, and Xander is leaning against the counter.

"I can't believe I let that thing get away. Cain was right. I shoulda killed it when I had the chance."

Oz walked in. "Killed what?"

"Uh, the, uh, the werewolf. It-it-it was out last night."

Oz nodded. "Is everybody okay? Did anyone get bitten or, or scratched?"

"No, we're fine."

"Gladness." Oz said, relieved.

"Yeah, but he got someone. Theresa."

Oz's face fell. "'Got', as in..."

Buffy raised her eyebrows.

"Oh, I'm sorry."

Buffy sighed. "And I coulda stopped it." She sat down next to Giles, taking comfort from being near him.

"Well, we, we have one more night." Giles told her.

"Another night?" Oz asked, eyes wide.

"Oh, yeah. Believe me, I'm gonna give that wolfie something to howl about."

"Hmm."

Xander walked over. "But while we hang here doing nothing, there's a human werewolf walking around out there, probably making fun of us."

"The way werewolves always do." Willow said sarcastically.

"But there's really no way to tell who it is." Oz insisted.

"Oh, sure there is. Giles knows stuff, and I'm practically an expert on the subject." Xander bragged.

"On account of once you were a hyena?"

"I know what it's like to crave the taste of freshly killed meat, to be taken over by those uncontrollable urges."

Buffy gave him a Look. "You said you didn't remember anything about that."

Xander chuckled nervously. "I said I didn't remember anything about that. Look, the point is, is I have an affinity with this thing. I can get inside of

its head." He closed his eyes. "I'm a big, bad wolf. I'm on the prowl.I'm sniffing, I'm snarling, I'm a slobbering predator, I'm..." His eyes flew open. "Wait a second! It's right in front of us." Oz takes a step back, his face pale. "It's obvious who I am. I'm Larry! The guy's practically got wolf-boy stamped on his forehead. You got the dog bite, you got the aggression, not to mention the excessive back hair."

"And he was awfully gleeful about tormenting Theresa."

"Still, that doesn't necessarily mean that..."

Xander shrugged. "I'm gonna go talk to him. Gonna force a confession out of him." He left.

"Good. Go. Uh, in the meantime, we need to cover our bases. Willow, um, check the student files. See if anybody else fits the profile. Uh, Buffy?"

"Where are we going?"

"I-if none of that works, I think I may have an alternative." He disapeared into the office.

"Yeah, me and the werewolf alone in a cage for three minutes. That's all I ask."

Oz sighed.

***********************************************************************

Later, Buffy came out of Giles' office and went over to check on Willow, who was surfting the internet on her laptop.

"So what's the scuttlebutt? Anybody besides Larry fit our werewolf profile?"

Willow smiled. "There is one name that keeps getting spit out. Aggressive behavior, run-ins with authorities, about a screenful of violent incidents."

Buffy scowled. "Okay, most of those were not my fault. Somebody else started 'em. I was just standing up for myself."

Willow looked up at her. "They say it's a good idea to count to ten when you're angry."

"One... Two... Three..."

Willow turned her attention back to the computer. "I'll keep looking."

"I, um... noticed you were looking solo."

"Yeah. Oz wanted to be someplace that was..." She hesitated and looked up at Buffy. "Away... from me."

"I'm sorry."

Willow leaned back in her chair. "I can't figure him out. I mean, he's so hot and cold. Or luke-warm and cold."

"Welcome to the mystery that is men. I think it goes something like, they grow body hair, they lose all ability to tell you what they really want."

"It doesn't seem like a fair trade." With a sigh, she stood and put her laptop away.

"Well, if you wanna up the speed quotient with Oz, maybe you need to do something daring. Maybe you need to make the first move."

They began to gather their stuff for class, and Willow frowned over at her.

"Well, that won't make me a slut?"

"I think your reputation will remain intact."

Willow and Buffy came out of the library and started down the hall together.

"It used to be so much easier to tell if a boy liked you. He'd punch you on the arm and then run back to his friends."

"Those were the days."

Xander appeared and tapped Buffy on the arm. "Hey."

"I'll see you guys later." Willow said. Buffy glanced at her. "Cordelia asked me to look over her history homework before class. I think that means I

might have to _do_ it."

She left.

"Wow, those two gals are hanging out a lot together. This would be a good time to panic."

Buffy laughed and walked down the hall with Xander.

"So how'd it go with Larry?"

"What's that supposed to mean?" Xander snapped defensively.

"I think it's supposed to mean, 'so how'd it go with Larry'?"

She stopped to open her locker.

"He's not the werewolf. Can't we just leave it at that? Must you continue to _push_ and _push_?

Used to Xander's strangeness, Buffy merely opened her locker and said, "I'm sorry. I was just wondering."

"Well, he's not."

"Okay."

"Okay."

"But there goes our lead suspect." She stuck her bag in her locker and closed it. "Which then puts us right back at square boned."

"You're not boned, you're Buffy. Eradicator of evil. Defender of, um... things that need defending."

"Tell that to Theresa. She could have used my defending before she was ripped apart by that..." She paused.

"Werewolf." Xander supplied helpfully.

"Nowhere in any of the reports did it say anything about her being mauled." She looked up at Xander. " I mean, they were linked to the animal attacks from the other night, so we just assumed werewolf."

"What else should we have assumed?"

******************************************************************************

Later, at the funeral home, Buffy opened Theresa's coffin and pulled down the scarf the girl had around her neck to reveal a bite.

"Vampire."

"So that's good, right?" Xander asked, "I mean in the sense of the werewolf

didn't get her, and..." Buffy gave him a Look. "No. There is no good here."

"No good. Instead of not protecting Theresa from the werewolf, I was able to not protect her from something just as bad." She went over to the guestbook and picked up a pen. "She had a lot of friends."

"Buffy, you can't blame yourself for every death that happens in Sunnydale. If it weren't for you people'd be lined up five deep waitin' to get themselves buried. Willow would be Robbie the Robot's love slave, I wouldn't even have a head..." He looked down at the coffin. "And Theresa's a vampire."

Theresa sat up and looked around with a low growl. Buffy whirled around to see the girl hop out of the coffin. instantly Buffy lunged for her and tried to wrestle her, but Theresa threw her and then went after her again, trying to pin her. Buffy rolls and breaks off the leg of a nearby wooden easle holding a wreth. She is about to stake Theresa when she says,

"Angel sends his love."

_Angel???_ Buffy blinks down at Theresa in shock and confusion, and Theresa uses the moment to kick Buffy's arm and send the makeshift stake flying. She pins Buffy and tries to bite her, but Xander stabs her from behind. Buffy stands.

"Angel..."

Xander was frowning. "That's not possible, is it? I mean, dead boy doesn't bite anymore."

"He didn't three weeks ago."

"You mean you actually think he bit Theresa?"

"I don't know. I mean - No! Of course he didn't. I have to go over there and check it out, make sure he's okay."

"I have a date with Cordelia later, but I can cancel..."

"No, I'll be fine."

Buffy started to leave the room, but Xander's voice had her turning around again.

"Yes?"

"At least take Giles with you? Please?"

Buffy hesitated, then nodded and left the room.

******************************************************************************

Two hours later, Buffy was pacing back and forth, alone, in Angel's apartment. She had arrived there an hour an a half ago, and had been waiting for him to return rather then to go out looking for him.

She had seriously considered stopping by the school first to get Giles, but then she imagined what it would be like if Angel really had gone back to biting. If Giles was injured just because she was too scared to face her ex-boyfriend alone, she would never forgive herself.

Finally, Buffy heard the door open, and Angel stepped into the room.

"Angel!" She ran to him.

"Hey!"

She hugged him tightly and stepped back.

"I was worried about you. Where have you been?"

"Been around."

"Oh. Alright. Its just I killed this vampire tonight and..."

"Buffy!" Angel held up a hand to silence her. "Do you really think that after my disgusting relationship with you, I would ever want to see you again, much less listen to your pathetic whining about how _hard _it is being 'the Slayer'?"

"What?"

Angel laughed, "You got a lot to learn about men, kiddo. Although I guess you proved that, showing up here today. Hanging out with the distinguished older librarian. Do you really think he wants to be around you because he _loves _you? Please, you're just a hot-ish young body to him. He could never love a baby like you."

"That's not true... Giles hasn't even _touched _me yet. What are you _saying_?"

"Right. Hasn't touched you yet. Of course not. He knows he's gotta put some work into making you trust him, and there's no reason for him not to wait until its all nice and legal." He sighed, as if bored. "Lets not make an issue out of it, okay? If fact, lets not talk about anything at all. Pretend I never kissed that revolting mouth, pretend I never told you I wanted to be with you forever. It was all a load of crap. Just like whatever the librarian is spewing to you."

"How can you say this to me?"

Angelus grinned and grabbed his coat, pulled it on. "Lighten had fun sometimes, right? It doesn't mean like we have to make a big deal."

He reached up to touch her face, but she jerked back.

"Don't touch me."

Angel sneered, shook a finer at her. " I should've known you wouldn't be able to handle it."

He started to leave, but Buffy called after him. "Angel!" He turned back. "I love you..."

He rolled his eyes and pointed at her, "Love ya too." He said carelessly, then left.

Buffy began to cry.

******************************************************************************

~~~~~~~~~~ Part 4 ~~~~~~~~~~

In the library, Giles opened a guncase, undid the straps and pulled

out some peices, easily setting up the tranquilizer gun.

Buffy entered the library.

"Sorry I'm late. I had to do some unscheduled slayage in the form of Theresa."

Buffy's tone was light and airy, her face dry and clear, but Giles could instantly tell something was wrong. Her eyes looked... broken.

"Good God, Buffy, what's wrong?"

He stoopd his assembling and dropped the gun onto the table, crossing to her and taking her face in his hands. "Are you hurt?"

"No." A lie, unless he meant only physical injury. "Giles..."

She looked into his beloved face, and suddenly a thought struck her. She remembered researching in the past that a vampire would loose his soul if he slept with someone. She had already concluded, on the way to the school, that Angel had lost his soul. He was completely different, and had started killing again. But what if Giles believed it was her Angel had slept with? And the horrible memories of Angel's tauntings, his comments about her being a baby to Giles... she couldn't stand that. She knew she had to talk to him...but they had a werewolf to catch first.

Buffy placed her hand on his face as well and leaned forward to kiss him lightly. He was so upset at her obvious pain that he did not even protest.

"Giles, can we talk about it after we catch the werewolf? Please? I just to get this over with, before I can think about it."

He nodded, and reluctantly released her. When he spoke, trying to change the subject, his voice was hoarse.

"So Theresa...She's a vampire?"

"Was. An...A vampire got her. Send her specifically to me as a little present. But that's part of what I want to talk about later."

He nodded and held up the tranquilizer gun, ready to hunt a werewolf.

"All set." He grabbed a dart and stared out. "Let's go find this thing."

"One question: how exactly do we find this thing?"

Giles frowned.

Suddenly Willow burst into the library.

"It's Oz! It's Oz!"

"Wh-what's Oz?"

"The werewolf."

"Are you certain?"

Willow's voice rose a coule of octaves. "Can't you just trust me on this? He-he said he was going through all these changes. Then he went through all these... changes."

"Where is he now?"

"In the woods."

"Let's go." Giles said.

Willow stopped him. "Go where? You're not gonna kill Oz! Yeah, he's a werewolf, but he doesn't mean to be."

"Don't worry, Willow. We're not going to hurt him."

They left.

"I put enough Phenobarbital in this thing to sink a small elephant. It should be enough for a large werewolf."

He grabbed his coat and held open the door for Buffy and Willow.

******************************************************************************

Gain had his eye - and his gun - trained on the werewolf he was watching from behind the cover of the bushes. He was about to pull the trigger when he was kicked unexpectedly from the side. His gun fired in the wrong direction, and the werewolf looked up.

Buffy grabbed Cain's gun and tried to wrestle it from him. Then she flipped the rifle, using it to flip the man's entire body, and gaining possession of the rifle. He tried to get up, but Buffy knocked him in the head with the barrel of the gun, and he passed out.

The werewolf lunged at her, and she ducked. Giles and Willow arrived just in time to see the werewolf grab Buffy and lift her off her feet. She pushed it back with the gun. As Giles tried to get a clear shot, the werewolf held Buffy between them.

"Careful!" Willow cried.

"Damn it!" Giles muttured.

Buffy raised the rifle and smacked the werewolf over the head with it. He dropped her, stunned, then smacked at her, knocking the gun from her hand. Oz shoved her away and into Giles and Willow, causing all three of them to topple. It lunged, and Willow scrambled for the tranquilizer gun, bringing it up. She pulled the trigger.

The dart hit Werewolf Oz in the chest, and he stumbled backwards before falling.

"I shot Oz." Willow murmured.

"You saved us."

He took the tranquilizer gun from her, and Buffy picked up Cain's rifle even as the man regained conciousness and stood.

"No wonder this town's overrun with monsters. No one here's man enough to kill 'em."

"Oh, I wouldn't be too sure of that."

Cain turned to see Buffy hlding out his gun with hold hands. Before his eyes, she bent the metal into an arch and pushed it into his hands.

He gaped at her.

How about you let the door hit you in the ass on the way out of town?" She suggested.

He left. Quickly.

Buffy moved over and crouched down next to Willow and Oz.

"You think it'll be okay?"

Both girls looked up at Giles.

"He'll be a little sore in the morning, but... he'll be Oz."

******************************************************************************

Later that night, Giles entered the library to see Buffy sitting at the table alone, staring into space. Silently, Giles walked up to her, ulled out a chair, and sat down facing her. He didn't say a word. He just waited.

Buffy told him everything in a rush, her words tripping over themselves as she described how she had broken up with Angel, what he said when she went into his apartment. then she added,

"And I'm so afraid that you're going to think that _I _slept with Angel and made him loose his soul, and I'm so afraid that Angel was right and you just see me as a child and can never really love me and -"

It was at that point that Giles covered her mouth with his hand and scooted his chair closer to hers so he could peer intently into her frightened face.

"Buffy. I know that you didn't sleep with Angel. The connection between us, its stronger then that. I'd know, just as you'd know if I tried to go sleep with someone else. I don't think its possible, for us to keep secrets from one another. Not with anything that monumental anyway. And as for what Angel said.." He trailed off and simply looked at her for a moment. "First off all, I could never see you as a child. Sure, I think you are a bit irresponsible at times. But most of the time, you are the most mature young woman I've ever met. Every day you risk your life for people you don't know, carry the burden of those that you couldn't save. And yet you live your life, refusing to give up anything, even to make your life easier. You have no idea how much I admire you for that."

When Buffy remained silent, staring at him with tears running down her cheeks, Giles added,

"Don't you realize we have the same types of insecurities in this relationship? I'm terrified that I'm too old for you, that you'll wake up and realize you're married to a toothless old man, that you'll want someone younger, prettier. And you're scared that I'll one day think you're too young, that I'll treat you like a child, like a baby, and not appreciate you for all that you are. But Buffy, I love everything about you. I can't imagine ever regretting. Its inconcievable to me. I love you too much."

Buffy started to cry harder, though still silently, and she whispered, "I feel the same way about you."

Giles took her in his arms and rocked her slightly, soothing her, and as he did he whispered,

"Buffy... we'll get through this together. We can make this work, we can get past the situation with Angel. I honestly believe we can do anything together, if we try."

She smiled, and rested her head against his chest, secure in the comfort of his arms.

******************************************************************************

The next day, Willow walked up to Oz outside, sitting at a table.

"Hey."

"Hey."

Willow sighed. "Did you want to go first?"

"I spoke to Giles. He said I'll be okay. I just have to lock myself up around the full moon. Only he used more words than that. And a globe."

"I'm sorry about how all this ended up. With me shooting you and all."

"It's okay. I'm, I'm sorry I almost ate you."

"It's okay. I kind of thought you would have told me." Willow looked away, then forced herself to meet his eyes, a sober expression on her face.

"I didn't know what to say. I mean, it's not everyday you find out you're a werewolf. That's fairly freaksome. It may take a couple days getting used to."

"Yeah. It's a complication."

"So..." He got off the table and they walked together. "Maybe it'd be best if I just... sorta..."

"What?"

"Well, you know, like, stayed out of your way for awhile."

"I don't know. I'm kind of okay with you being _in_ my way."

Oz stopped and faced her. "You mean, you'd still..."

"Well, I like you. You're nice and you're funny. And you don't smoke. Yeah, okay, werewolf, but that's not all the time. I mean, three days out of the month I'm not much fun to be around either."

"You are quite the human."

She smiled. "So, I'd still if you'd still."

"I'd still. I'd _very_ still."

Her smile broadened. "Okay. No biting, though."

"Agreed."

Willow started to walk away, and Oz watcher her go, a smile on his face. His eyes widened in surprise, however, when she turned around and came rushing back. She stared at him for a moment, then kissed him, before running off again.

Oz smiled.

"A werewolf in love."

******************************************************************************

Okay I know that one was long... but its such a nice episode ^_^ Also that confrontation with Angel happens in the previous episode, but when you're skipping episodes you just kinda gotta stick in the important stuff. I hope it worked, and that you liked. Please review


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